Kim Ha is 10.

Kim Ha loves her mother and her papaya tree.

Kim Ha has three brothers, Khoi, Vu, and Quang.

Kim Ha is sad that she had to cut her papaya tree down.

Kim Ha has never met her father.

Kim Ha throws her doll along with Brother Khoi's chick into the ocean to make him feel better about having to get rid of his chick.

Kim Ha has a bit of a temper, especially when she gets bullied at school.

Kim Ha tossed her doll and Brother Khoi's dead chick into the ocean together so that he would feel better about it.

Mother misses Father a lot but doesn't want to talk about it around her children.

Mother does rituals to pray for Father's return.

Mother has to stretch to get enough food for her children.

Mother's eyes are sunken and deep.

Mother's marriage with Father was arranged.

Mother has a job at a sewing factory, but she hurts her fingers because the sewing machine goes too fast.

Mother tried to sell her amethyst ring to buy clothes and food for her kids.

Mother sent a letter to the North, telling Father's family of his disappearance.

Father has been MIA for nine years.

Father used to follow Mother around and say tuyet sut, the Vietnamese way to say right away.

Father was in the Navy.

Father's best friend graduated from the same Navy academy as him.

Father loved his children.

Brother Khoi has a hen.

Brother Khoi is very compassionate towards Kim Ha.

Brother Khoi doesn't want to leave Vietnam because he doesn't want Father to return and have his family gone.

Brother Khoi is the youngest brother.

Brother Khoi hatched a chick.

Brother Khoi had his dead chick with him on the boat, but he had to throw it in the ocean since it stunk really badly.

Brother Khoi has a bike, so he lets Kim Ha ride with him to school because she is being bullied.

Brother Khoi hasn't been doing well ever since they moved to Alabama.

Brother Vu loves Bruce Lee.

Brother Vu does martial arts.

Brother Vu wants to leave Vietnam so he can walk the same ground Bruce Lee walked on.

Brother Vu sewed a belt when he used to love Johnny Cash.

Brother Vu is the middle son.

Brother Vu is a very good cook, and enjoys doing it.

Brother Vu tells Kim Ha that he is going to teach her self defense against her bullies.

Brother Vu is making everyone call him Vu Lee.

Brother Quang is 21.

Brother Quang is in college.

Brother Quang is studious.

Brother Quang doesn't want to leave Vietnam because he doesn't want to leave without dignity and honor.

Brother Quang is studying engineering.

Brother Quang uses fancy words to impress people.

Brother Quang is working in Alabama.

Brother Quang used to help Kim Ha with her English.

Cowboy lives in Alabama.

Cowboy sponsored Kim Ha's family.

Cowboy is nicer than his wife to Kim Ha's family.

Cowboy sometimes brings Kim Ha's family gifts.

Cowboy doesn't have a horse, unlike what Kim Ha thought.

Cowboy tried to introduce Kim Ha's family to the neighbors, but most of them wanted nothing to do with her family.

Cowboy heard about Pink Boy and got him to apologize to Kim Ha

Cowboy is very nice to Kim Ha.

Miss Scott is Kim Ha's teacher.

Miss Scott teases Kim Ha for her name, thinking she's joking about it.

Miss Scott makes Kim Ha say the alphabet and count numbers, and the class claps.

Miss Scott is kind of annoying.

Miss Scott lets Kim Ha eat in her classroom instead of the cafeteria, because of Mississ Washington.

Cowboy's Wife doesn't seem to like Kim Ha's family that much.

Cowboy's Wife cares about what her neighbors think about Kim Ha's family, since she makes them stay in the basement.

Cowboy's Wife is racist.

Cowboy's Wife has blonde hair.

Cowboy's Wife seems to like Kim Ha's family after they get baptized.

Pink Boy has pink skin with white hair.

Pink Boy bullies Kim Ha.

Pink Boy is an opp.

Pink Boy is a racist.

Pink Boy followed Kim Ha home to laugh at her.

Pink Boy tries to follow Kim Ha home and yells Boo-Da at her.

Pink Boy says that he'll get his cousin to beat Kim Ha up.

Pink Boy runs into Kim Ha and he gets scared off by Vu Lee.

Mississ Washington is elderly.

Mississ Washington is one of Cowboy's neighbors.

Mississ Washington is tutoring Kim Ha.

Mississ Washington teaches Kim Ha a new word every day.

Mississ Washington motivates Kim Ha with food.

Mississ Washington finds out that Kim Ha doesn't eat much and that she eats in the bathroom, so she promises to pack her a lunch everyday and arrange for her to eat in the classroom.

Mississ Washington shows Kim Ha pictures of her son who died in the Vietnam War.

Mississ Washington told Kim Ha to tell her bullies to say something back to her in Vietnamese since they bullied her for her English.

Kim Ha met Pam and Steven on her first day eating in the classroom.

Pam and Steven are Kim Ha's friends.

Pam and Steven agreed to help Kim Ha escape Pink Boy's cousin.

Pam gave Kim Ha a new doll for Christmas.

Kim Ha gave Pam the seeds she got from TiTi before she left.