Description: California girl born and raised, Mai can't wait to spend her vacation at the beach. Instead, though, she has to travel to Vietnam with her grandmother, who is going back to find out what really happened to her husband during the Vietnam War. Mai's parents think this trip will be a great opportunity for their out-of-touch daughter to learn more about her culture. But to Mai, those are their roots, not her own.
Brief description:
Thanhha Lai was born in Vietnam and moved to Alabama in 1975. She received a degree in journalism from the University of Texas and worked as a journalist at the Orange County Register for two years before deciding to switch to fiction writing. She lives in New York City with her family and teaches writing at Parsons The New School of Design.