Review: Inside Out And Back Again

According to the IRC, there are now more than 82 million refugees and people who have been displaced around the world. The novel Inside Out and Back Again, by Thanha Lai is about a girl named Ha who becomes a refugee because of the Vietnam war. Ha and her family are forced to flee their homes and have to experience many challenges because of this, turning their lives inside out though their lives are slowly turned back again. The article “I Live Inside a Refugee Camp” by Kristin Lewis is about a girl who becomes a refugee and has to live in a refugee camp. During her journey, she becomes aware of the challenges refugees face and how their lives are turned inside out. The speech “Refugee Transitions” is about an organization which helps refugees

One place where this can be seen is in Inside Out and Back Again, Lai says, “Our ship creeps along the river route without lights, without cooking, without bathrooms. We are told to sip water only when we must so our bodies can stop needing. Mine won't listen” (Lai 73). While Ha’s family is fleeing Vietnam on a ship they have no access to light, fresh food, bathrooms and water, turning their lives inside out. Ha’s family is unable to access basic necessities they previously had and have to struggle to live without access to them. Another place where this can be seen is in “I live in a refugee camp” Lewis says, “Around the world there are more than 100 refugee camps..there may be shortages of food, water, power or inadequate bathroom facilities. Basic supplies like toothpaste and shoes may be hard to get” (Lewis). Many refugees are forced to live in refugee camps when fleeing home. Many of these camps lack simple things refugees need to survive. Having to live without access to these necessities turns refugees live inside out.

One place where this can be seen in Inside Out and Back Again is when Lai says, “I tap my own chest:Ha. She must have heard ha as in funny ha ha ha, and I wish I knew enough English to tell her to listen to the diacritical mark.” (Lai 140). On Ha’s first day of school, she is unable to explain what her name is to her teacher. Once Ha is finally able to learn English, she will be better able to adapt to her new home and communicate with others there, turning her life back again. Another place where this can be seen is in the speech “Refugee Transitions'' Gurung says, “Many of us (refugees) did not speak English and a lack of education made it difficult to learn a language…when we first arrived, my wife was unable to understand any English. Just taking the bus and going to the store was a challenge for her.” When Gurung and his family were relocated, they did not understand English which made their daily lives difficult. Once Gurung and his family were able to learn English, their lives turned back again since they were now able to easily complete their daily tasks and live like others in their new