Thi Bui's The Best We Could Do

Thi Bui has written and collaborated with authors. Bui’s stories explains her childhood and her family’s journey through their lifestyle of the Vietnam War. The book that she wrote “The Best We Could Do” is about her experience of being a refugee .The book is mainly about her parents and how they were raised, but she adds her childhood and compares it to her parents.
Consequently, It’s very different from American culture, but since she’s considered Vietnamese American, it was fifty-fifty of the cultural differences. Throughout the book there was a lot of arguing with her family especially about her culture. “Certain shadows stretched far, casting a gray stillness over our childhood” ( Bui page 44) . She explained how her parents lifestyle affected her and her siblings childhood …show more content…
Three months after she was born, the major historical event -- Vietnam War had ended. She was a high school teacher but took a break to focus more on her book.
In the beginning it took place in the hospital where Thi’s mom was giving birth to thi. Thi’s mother told her that her father went to the movies but Thi’s father told her a different story. That was one of many conflicts-- trust. She didn’t know who to trust. “We are the people who raised us.” (bui 174)
Thi has a son and continues to support him, her husband and her mother. Her book is for her son it’s like a memoir to read. You can try to forget the past but it’ll always be apart of you, it’s what makes you who you are today. That’s one of her themes.
“But in my gut I’d already said bye to him forever” (bui 89), Something was telling bui that she wasn’t ever going to see her dad again. That was part of the book when she was feeling hopeless and that was one of many of her conflicts. It continues to lead into more conflicts throughout the