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Andrew Pham: CSPAN
Summary
This memoir revolves around the experiences of Andrew Pham or An, for short. A seemingly lost man in his early twenties, An embarks on a 4000 mile bike ride from his home in California, up the west coast and across the Pacific and finally ending in his hometown in Vietnam...
Setting and Structure
This is a non linear structure that is complied of various flashbacks from multiple points of view. Every italicized chapter is titled "Fallen-Leaves" and offers insight to what makes up the persona of each character. Otherwise, Andrew travels across the Pacific to various parts of Asia including, Japan, Vietnam and China.
Characters
An: the protagonist in his twenties who tells the story with great perspective
Chi/Minh: Chi is originally An's older sister who is very masculine and often beat by her father. Later on, she undergoes a sex change and becomes Minh, later killing himself at the age of 34. The family both collectively and individually feels guilty for not being there for Chi.
Huy: An's brother, gay and is scared to admit it to his family. Shares a deep connection with An after a conversation of coming out as gay.
Hien: Another one of An's brothers, is also gay
Kay: An's youngest sister, very smart, in high school
Rice-Girl/Papaya-Girl: are important to the contrast between rich and poor, foreign and Viet-Kieu.
Kim
Uncle Ho: an ex -military uncle who An compares himself too. Both are searching for a sense of self-worth
Anh: An's mother, has an awkward relationship with her children. Although she loves them, she is no nurturer, more of a provider. All she knows is the harsh realities of emigrating to America and raising a family. She has trouble understanding the odd American culture, and also receives no love from her children who live in an alternate culture
Thong: Andrew's father, has the "curse" passed down from his father, is abusive, but shows regret for how he raised his children in the end. Very disciplined and educated, he raised his kids to succeed in occupation, but lacked care and nurturing.
Trieu: An's girlfriend, reunites with her ex-military father after being estranged from him for years. It is revealed that she wants to connect with her father, but she is sexually abused by him leading An to severe rage over the situation.
Tien:
Crazy Ronnie
Uncle Tu
Grandma Le
(Step) Grandpa Le
Aunt Dung
Wong: an inmate at the prison camp that An stays in for awhile. He seems to be a gentle giant, however, after being pushed to the edge by guards and other inmates he unleashes in a rampage. He ends up destroying many items across the camp, climbing up to the top of the camp, and jumping off.
No-Name Boy: No-name boy is a common peasant villager who befriends tourists, following them around for hours. He is like a "pet" to all the tourists who seem to pass him off to one and another. An feels bad when leaving him behind, because of his beautiful smile and gentle nature. The fact that he is deaf-mute, it adds to the cuteness factor, which An can't stand leaving behind.
Themes
-No person is pure good or evil: think Thong, An and the people on the cargo train, both helping him and getting him really sick
-Before you can move forward you need to recognize your roots: An needs to understand his roots in Vietnam in order to come closer to his family
-The past can come back to haunt you: An is tormented by the townspeople for a decision his family made to leave Saigon. This opportunity while limited to some, established him as a Viet-kieu, an outsider and traitor
-When hope is gone, people turn to dangerous behavior to cope: the bicycle trip alone was definitely dangerous An, confused, and searching for something in life, decides to make the brash decision to bike 3000 miles.
-Great change and ravel can either strengthen or weaken
-Adventure is a collection of detours: Basically, An is experiencing the most excitement, culture and information during his detours. It's not the goals that end up teaching you, it is the unexpected people you meet on the way that offer the most personal insight.
-A physical journey can lead to emotional changes: the physical treachery brings out his characteristic, determination and helps him meet others who help him as well.
-The experiences in your life shape who you become: easy
-One must explore the past in order to fix the present: see above
-How others view a person can shape how they view themselves: An learns much from Calvin, and from Tin, who teaches him much about the culture he left behind
-Persistence yields favorable results: c'mon to easy
-Journeys can sometimes deviate from the path you thought they would take resulting in discoveries along the way: take the detour: ex, take the fork in the road, the scenic route, even though its harder
Symbols, Motifs, Metaphors
- Gaping fish: Fish is alive, but paralyzed. Like An and his existence in Vietnam. He is invested in the culture, but is paralyzed about what he left behind, the emotions paralyze him
- Angels; the lady sees the angels right before the fall of Saigon. While everyone is running through the streets, she tries to convince young An that there are angels within the dark sky. The angels symbolize a hope for the country and its people.
- Claypot Fish: the ever-lasting bond between people, specifically An and his mother. When she would leave for days at a time, An could eat almost everything out of the clay pot fish, always delicious and always enough.
- Coca-Cola: A symbol of wealth and pleasure. An's monetary wealth as a visiting Viet-kieu is important to the way the townspeople treat him. They despise his wealth and manners. His mother also gives him Coca-Cola as a youngling to accustom him to American lifestyle so he can succeed.
- Guilt: An is constantly feeling guilty over the people he "fails" He even says he fails everyone who loves him. Like Chi, his mother and the people in poverty in Vietnam. Being a Viet-Kieu, he feels guilty for not suffering like the rest of his people did during the civil war and the fall of Saigon
Quotes and Significant Moments
An searching for his "rigor of proof": An needs to feel the physical pain of the adventure to truly learn about his roots. He needs not only to visit his ancestors, but experience what they did. The physical strength and stamina he needs is all part of his "rigor of proof" he desires to fulfill.
An feels the "wounding horrors": After arriving in Vietnam, An is introduced to Hung and Son, who show him the "vice and depravity" of Vietnam. While they enjoy the liveliness of their culture, An realizes the disappointment they must feel.
The Boat Scene: this scene, which carries on between a few chapters adds to the intensity of the fall of Saigon. By using personification between the sea, the boat and the sun, the reader becomes encapsulated into the novel. These chapters explain how the family escaped Vietnam with little gas, food and hope on a small fishing boat with many others.
Chi doesn't come home from school: This is significant, because it basically it is the end of Chi, and the beginning of a new person: Minh. She is so badly beaten that the teachers at school send the police to arrest her father, Thong. She never comes home, afraid of her father and facing her distant family. That night, she returns for some rations then heads out towards "San Francisco."
"Dignity doesn't ride shotgun to opportunism": In the Vietnamese culture, it is always better to seize opportunity, rather than defend your dignity. This quote basically means, it is ok to feel uncomfortable or small in the name of jumping on opportunity to do something new. This concept applies to all the new people An meets, as they are both friendly and open to him.
"My mind cannot rest, because I am a man of regrets": This is said by Thong, who despite his age could be retired, chooses to work until his last hour because of his regrets. He feels his work makes up for his regrets, like not raising his kids to be straight.
"A survivor does not have the luxury of counting his blessings" Also said by Thong to An in the same chapter. This basically means that Thong is so tormented by what he survived that he became cold. This is why he was not a gracious loving father.
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