Inside Out And Back Again

Hà refers to the man who agrees to sponsor them as their cowboy. A plane ride brings the family to Alabama, where their cowboy welcomes them to live in his home. The cowboy’s wife, however, shows “arms, lips, eyes / contorted into knots” (115), so Mother and the children stay in the basement of the house. Mother tells Hà and her brothers that their primary concern should be learning English until they master it.

Living in America is complicated. Hà is unused to the plural “s” sound in English and must practice it, and the rules for plural and singular verbs confuse; some nouns defy the -s rule altogether, and irregular verbs make no sense. Reading English is equally frustrating, and Hà recalls the complex reading levels she tackled at home. Peeks of the neighborhood show a quiet street and manicured lawn.

The cowboy brings a fast food bucket of fried chicken as a treat, but Mother, Brother Vũ, and Brother Quang don’t care for the texture and flavor of industry-raised and factory-processed chicken, compared to the meat of fresh-killed yard chickens to which they are accustomed. Brother Khôi refuses to eat poultry altogether. Hà eats the crispy chicken and pretends to enjoy it for the sake of the cowboy, but inside compares it to “bread soaked in water” (121).