As the Vietnam War threatens her village, ten-year
old Ha must flee Saigon and move to Alabama. Talk about culture shock! Each day as she struggles to adapt, she writes
in her diary in free verse (kids will be reading poetry without even realizing
it), with both humor and sadness about what it’s like being a foreigner trying
to fit in.
This is a great book to introduce kids 8 and up to poetry because it really just reads like a diary, but with the spareness and careful word choice of poetry. For something definitely different than
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, give this Newbery Honor Book and National Book Award for Young People's Literature winner a try.
J LAI
