Chapters 36-39 Summary and Analysis

Chapter 36 is another "Fallen-Leaves" chapter, going back to when An was four, holding a toy six-shot gun and pretending to hide from red-Indians under a table covered in sheets. A woman and man came into the room, laughing, and he saw their clothes fall to the floor. An's father had told him not to come into this room, and he knew this was bad. The table began to rock and creak. This chapter provided a veiled answer to Andrew's question of Grandma Le at the end of Chapter 32 about how his parents had made their money.

In Chapter 37, "Gaping-Fish," Andrew encountered no trouble going by bicycle over a notoriously dangerous mountain pass outside Hue, although later he came upon a woman who had fainted in the road. Nobody in the crowd around her would help until Andrew gave money...