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Original Essays | April 30, 2013
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More copies of this ISBNThe Dust of Life: America's Children Abandoned in Vietnamby Robert S Mckelvey
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:The Dust of Life is a collection of vivid and devastating oral histories of Vietnamese Amerasians. Abandoned during the war by their American fathers, discriminated against by the victorious Communists, and ignored for many years by the American government, they endured life in impoverished Vietnam. Their stories are sad, sometimes tragic, but they are also testimonials to the strength of human resiliency.
Robert S. McKelvey is a former marine who served in Vietnam in the late 1960s. Now a child psychiatrist, he returned to Vietnam in 1990 to begin the long series of interviews that resulted in this book. While allowing his subjects to speak for themselves, McKelvey has organized their narratives around themes common to their lives: early maternal loss, the experience of prejudice and discrimination, coping with adversity, dealing with shattered hopes for the future, and, for some, adapting to the alien environment of the United States. While unique in many respects, the Vietnamese Amerasian story also illustrates themes that are tragically universal: neglect of the human by-products of war, the destructiveness of prejudice and racism, the pain of abandonment, and the horrors of life amidst extreme poverty, hostility, and neglect. Book News Annotation:McKelvey (child and adolescent psychiatry, Oregon Health Sciences University) presents a collection of oral histories recounting the stories of Vietnamese Amerasians. While allowing his subjects to speak for themselves, he has organized their narratives around themes common to their lives: early maternal loss, the experience of prejudice and discrimination, coping with adversity, and for some, adapting to the alien environment of the United States.
Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Synopsis:McKelvey has collected vivid and devastating oral histories of Vietnamese Amerasians who were abandoned during the war by their American fathers.
Synopsis:The Dust of Life is a collection of vivid and devastating oral histories of Vietnamese Amerasians. Abandoned during the war by their American fathers, discriminated against by the victorious Communists, and ignored for many years by the American government, they endured life in impoverished Vietnam. Their stories are sad, sometimes tragic, but they are also testimonials to human resiliency.<P>Robert McKelvey is a former marine who served in Vietnam in the late 1960s. Now a child psychiatrist, he returned to Vietnam in 1990 to begin the long series of interviews that resulted in this book. While allowing his subjects to speak for themselves, McKelvey has organized their narratives around themes common to their lives: early maternal loss, the experience of prejudice and discrimination, coping with adversity, dealing with shattered hopes for the future, and, for some, adapting to the alien environment of the United States.<P>While unique in many respects, the Vietnamese Amerasian story also illustrates themes that are tragically universal: neglect of the human by-products of war, the destructiveness of prejudice and racism, the pain of abandonment, and the horrors of life amidst extreme poverty, hostility, and neglect.
Description:Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-130) and index.
Table of ContentsWho are the Vietnamese Amerasians? — Amerasians in Vietnam — Growing up without a mother or father — Prejudice and discrimination — Amerasians in the United States — Adapting to life in the United States — Expectations and later adjustment — Disabled Amerasians — Searching for father — Conclusion.
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History and Social Science » Asia » Vietnam
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