This summer, Ami Chi is taking a trip to far off Vietnam, where the streets are crowded with zipping scooters and the fruit are shaped like dragons and stars. To her parents, Vietnam is still home—a home they haven’t seen since they left during the war. But all this talk of going back home leave Ami Chi confused. How can you go back home to a place you¹ve never been?
Ami Chi finds her answer in the rolling green rice paddies that blanket the countryside, in the bustling Cho Lon market, and in the quiet rooms of her grandmother’s house. Vietnam may be nothing like America, but some things—like the help of a new friend—make this strange place feel familiar. Before long, Ami Chi finds that sometimes, you can travel farther than you ever thought possible and still find yourself at home.
Truong Tran was born in Vietnam. In 1975, he immigrated with his family to the San Francisco Bay Area. Truong has received several poetry fellowships, and his poems have been published in literary journals such as ZZYZZYVA, The American Voice, and Poetry East. The author of three critically acclaimed books of poetry, Truong currently lives in San Francisco.
Ann Phong was born in Saigon, Vietnam. In 1981 she escaped Vietnam by boat, and after a year of living in refugee camps in Malaysia and the Philippines, she settled in Southern California. Ann has shown her work in galleries and museums here and abroad. She currently teaches art at California State Polytechnic University Pomona.
“In this intimate bilingual tale bridging two cultures, Tran and Phong ... write and paint from the heart...” — Publishers Weekly
“Phong’s richly colored, double-page acrylic paintings capture both the child’s dislocation in the strange crowds and the contrast between the two worlds she knows.” — Booklist
“Phong’s market and street scenes put readers into authentic settings. She captures Saigon’s street life perfectly with her portrayal of a boy carrying a steaming bowl of noodles across a street while traffic dances around him.” — The Sacramento Bee
“. . . an artistic book, both from the standpoint of Truong Tran's lyrical prose, and from Ann Phong's textured oil painted images of bustling market scenes, quenching rainstorms, and tender moments between grandchild and grandmother. Truong Tran's bilingual work is a welcome addition to the slowly emerging body of Vietnamese-American children's literature.” — Asian Review of Books
