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Excerpt

Excerpt Reveal for Family Style by Thien Pham

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Today we’re excited to share an exclusive excerpt for Family Style by Thien Pham! This young adult graphic memoir will be released on June 20, 2023 by First Second Books. Preorder it here.

Thien’s first memory isn’t a sight or a sound. It’s the sweetness of watermelon and the saltiness of fish. It’s the taste of the foods he ate while adrift at sea as his family fled Vietnam.

After the Pham family arrives at a refugee camp in Thailand, they struggle to survive. Things don’t get much easier once they resettle in California. And through each chapter of their lives, food takes on a new meaning. Strawberries come to signify struggle as Thien’s mom and dad look for work. Potato chips are an indulgence that bring Thien so much joy that they become a necessity.

Behind every cut of steak and inside every croissant lies a story. And for Thien Pham, that story is about a search—for belonging, for happiness, for the American dream.

Cover art for FAMILY STYLE: Memories of an American from Vietnam by Thien Pham. A bowl full of broth, vegetables, and noodles with chopsticks and a deep soup spoon sits in the foreground. In the background is a collection of assorted panels from within the book rendered in mint green and slate blue, in contrast to the colorful bowl of food.

First spread from FAMILY STYLE: A hand dips into water in the first panel as the narration reads, "It wasn't a sight or a sound." The next panel shows a family huddled together, the young boy in the middle holding his hand up to his mouth. The boy spits out the water, saying "Ack!" His mother, cradling an infant, says, "I told you, don't drink the seawater!" He replies, "I'm so thirsty." The parent says, "That water will make you thirstier!" The view zooms out to show a boat full of refugees on the ocean. On the next page, night has fallen. Within the same small family from before, the children are asleep. One parent says, "This boat is falling apart... there's no more food and water." The other parent says, "Shh..." The first parent says, "I don't think we're going to make it." The other replies, looking irritated, "You worry too much." "But... we..." says the first parent, to which the other says, "Shh! Go to sleep. We'll be fine." The next panels zoom out to the boat on the water as it goes from night to day. One of the parents looks up in astonishment, shielding their eyes with one hand.

Second spread from FAMILY STYLE: The massive shadow of a ship falls over the water, waves rocking the much smaller refugee boat. Someone aboard the ship speaks from the deck. One of the refugees translates for the others, saying, "They said they will take us as far as they can, and give us food and water for some money..." The people on the boat look up in surprise, then begin lining up to offer money in exchange for food. A member of the small family says, "We have five people. Can we get some more?" The final panel shows the children in the family being handed plates of squid, watermelon, and rice.

Third spread from FAMILY STYLE: One of the parents says, "I'm going to save this rice ball for you." The young boy from earlier happily bites into a huge watermelon quarter, juice running down his chin. The large ship pulls the small refugee boat alongside it. Refugees stand, sit, walk around, and look out on the water from the large ship. One seated parent in the little family asks the other, "What's wrong?" The other says, "The ship is getting threats from pirates. They're going to kick all of us off." A rope ladder is lowered from the ship so that the refugees can return to their boat. One of the parents says, "I think those are the pirate boats over there!" The refugee boat gets rocked by waves. "That one is heading straight for us!" another refugee yells.

Fourth spread from FAMILY STYLE: "They're coming!" cries one of the parents, as the young boy huddles against the other parent. The refugees begin to panic, crying out. One of the parents takes the young boy's face in their hands, saying, "Thien. Listen to me." The boy is weeping. "I need you to close your eyes and hold on to me. Don't let go, no matter what. Don't let go. It'll be okay, I'm here." The other parent tries to comfort the baby as the boy presses against the first parent's side. "They're here!!!" yells another person on the boat and the parent cradling Thien says, "It'll be okay... I'm right here. Close your eyes. It's going to be okay. I'm right here with you." Thien keeps weeping as he closes his eyes. In the dark, he still hears, "I'm here."

 

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Headshot photo of Thien Pham
Credit: Briana Loewinsohn

Thien Pham is a graphic novelist, comic artist, and educator based in Oakland, CA. He is the author and illustrator of the graphic novel Sumo and did the art for the middle-grade graphic novel Level Up, written by Gene Luen Yang, and is an ongoing comic contributor to Eater SF. Currently Pham is working on his next graphic novel, teaching, and eating. A lot. Follow Thien on Twitter and Instagram.