The Paper Boat: A Refugee Story

ISBN: 1771473630

Author: Lam, Thao

Condition: New

Named a best picture book of 2020 by Kirkus, School Library Journal, Booklist, New York Public Library, the Globe and Mail, CBC, and the Bulletin of the Center for Childrens Books - a heartfelt and personal immigration story by critically acclaimed author Thao LamNew from Thao Lam, the award-winning author of picture books My Cat Looks Like My Dad, Wallpaper, and Skunk on a String, comes a personal story inspired by her familys refugee journey.In The Paper Boat, Thaos signature collage art tells the wordless story of one familys escape from Vietnam-a journey intertwined with an ant colonys parallel narrative.At her home in Vietnam, a girl rescues ants from the sugar water set out to trap them. Later, when the girls family flees war-torn Vietnam, ants lead them through the moonlit jungle to the boat that will take them to safety. Before boarding, the girl folds a paper boat from a bun wrapper and drops it into the water, and the ants climb on. Their perilous journey, besieged by punishing weather, predatory birds, and dehydration, before reaching a new beginning, mirrors the familys own. Impressionistic collages and a moving, Own Voices narrative make this a one-of-a-kind tale of courage, resilience, and hope.