Butterfly Yellow Summary
Thanhha Lai

Butterfly Yellow Overview

Thanhhà Lại's Butterfly Yellow follows the efforts of Hằng, a Vietnamese refugee, to be reunited with her long-lost brother, Linh, whom she inadvertently gave away to American soldiers during the evacuation of North Việt Nam. Set primarily in the Texas panhandle near the city of Amarillo, the novel explores questions of culture and heritage among both the rural farmers of the American west and the Vietnamese diaspora. As Hằng's circumstances become increasingly complicated, the novel addresses themes of immigration, grief, gender, class, and family.