Parachute Kids

Juvenile graphic novel 

     Reading books to provide content for my beloved 💕 ♥️ 💖 ❤️ 💗 💓 blog never ceases to be an educational experience.  I'd never heard of parachute kids, Asian kids left in foreign countries by parents desperate for them to escape peril in their native lands, until I read Betty C. Tang's Parachute Kids.  A superb combination of dialog and illustrations makes it a most poignant and powerful narrative.

     Feng-Li, youngest of three siblings, is excited about her family's trip to America.  She has a great time until her parents drop some unwelcome news on her and her siblings.  Her father is about to return to Taiwan.  The rest of the family must stay in the United States.  Feng-Li, now Ann, has to start a school where she can't keep up with her English speaking peers and none of her classmates seem friendly, not even the only other Chinese girl.

     A few days later the siblings get more bad news.  Their mother, unable to get her tourist visa extended, must also leave.  Her underage children, whose visas will also have expired, will be on their own to cope with a new world in which they have to stay under the radar or face deportation...

     ...which might not be easy.  Ann's older brother, whose actions are at least partly responsible for the move, is joining a pretty sketchy crowd.  

     And nobody has warned them about the predatory professional scammers.

     Tang based her narrative on her personal experiences.  In 1979 her mother and father sent her and her siblings to America to escape the war they feared was imminent.  At first life was challenging, but eventually her new country became home.  As an adult she can see how hard leaving their children must have been for her parents.

     "Parachute Kids is not a memoir, but a mixture of fiction, my family's first experiences in America, and anecdotes of immigrant friends I met along the way.  I felt compelled to write it because I think it is important for more people to know about these children and their parents."

On a purrrsonal note, I had a really good Thursday.  In the morning I gave tours of the Commuter Lounge to groups of international students.  They really seemed engaged and excited.  They loved choosing best little friends ❤️ 💗 💕 💓 from Black Bear Animal Shelter.  I picked up my Maine Hello tee shirt.  I went to the library where I met up with Daisy and gave her a tour of downtown Orono.  She really liked some of the stores.  I ended my day at the Wilson Center potluck dinner.  The weather was beautiful.  (Jules)

It was a beautiful day.  (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to Daisy with best wishes for a fabulous career at Fogler.

Tobago and Jules Hathaway 

     

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