Vietnam

Finding Papa

Sophie Rosen , ,

Krans, Angela Pham. Finding Papa. New York: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 2023.
After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, thousands of people tried to escape their devastated country. Setting out on boats into the unknown, they hoped for a better life in a new place. Some survived. This picture book – illustrated by a Caldecott Honor winner – is the story of one such family, a mother and daughter trying to reach America. Based on the author’s own childhood experience, this powerful picture book – well-suited to reading aloud – is recommended for children 6 to 11 years old.

Another story about the Vietnamese “boat people”

A true story about Vietnam

More stories of refugees

Too Young to Escape

Sophie Rosen , ,

Imagine being left behind when your parents move to another country. That is what happened to young Van. She was left behind when her parents and older siblings fled from the communist rulers in Vietnam. Happily, Van was eventually able to rejoin her family in Canada. 

The large print and widely spaced lines make this 142-page book – illustrated with photographs – easy to read, but the story itself is not so easy to read.  Recommended for brave readers with compassionate hearts.

Ho, Van and Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch. Too Young to Escape: A Vietnamese Girl Waits to Be Reunited with Her Family. Toronto: Pajama Press, 2018.

More stories about refugees

Where are we going?

Sophie Rosen , , , , , ,

Skrypuch, Marsha Forchuk with Tuan Ho. Adrift At Sea: A Vietnamese Boy’s Story of Survival. Toronto: Pajama Press, 2016.
In 1981, six-year-old Tuan escaped with his mother and two of his sisters. In the middle of the night, they got on a boat which took them far out to sea where they were rescued by sailors on an American aircraft carrier. Illustrated by award-winning Brian Deines, this powerful picture book tells the true story of one child’s journey as a refugee from Vietnam to Canada. Accompanied by historical and biographical information, as well as numerous photographs, this informative and inspiring story is recommended for readers 8 years old and up.

More books by Canadian authors HERE

More books about refugees HERE

More picture book memoirs HERE