Little Cricket

Publishers Weekly

This quietly told first novel about a tumultuous period in history begins with 12-year-old Kia Vang, nicknamed "Little Cricket," in a city far from home, before flashing back to the events that set her migration in motion: the 1970s invasion of her Laotian village by the North Vietnamese. Enemy soldiers conscript the village men to fight the U.S. The Americans retaliate by dropping bombs on suspected Communist camps near Kia's village. Her family flees to a refugee camp in Thailand, where they spend three years waiting to immigrate. When permission is granted, it's for Kia, her brother, Xigi, and grandfather only-mother and grandmother must wait. The three relocate to Minnesota, where grandfather and Kia plant a garden of vegetables to sell at market, and Xigi grows distant. Marooned in an English-speaking world, Kia befriends two other outsiders. The pacing is uneven-a few pages cover three years at the refugee camp, and some threads of the story, such as the fate an elderly friend left in the mountains, are left hanging. While the story feels familiar, and a prologue situating Kia in her new home robs the story of a potential source of tension, the details about Hmong culture will be new to most readers, and Kia's sense of alienation may resonate with other kids who feel displaced. Ages 9-12. (June) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

Kia and her family are forced to leave their beloved Laotian mountains to survive the Vietnam War, so they undertake a dangerous journey of several months to cross the Mekong River and enter Thailand. The Americans working there find sponsors for them to move to Minnesota, where other Hmong families have emigrated. Errors in paperwork prevent her mother and grandmother from coming along when Kia, her brother, and grandfather leave. Little Cricket, as Kia's grandfather calls her, finds that people in her new home can be unexpectedly kind just as they can be inexplicably hurtful. It is her grandfather's presence and wisdom that makes Kia's pain at losing both father and home bearable. The tension in the story comes when her grandfather seems unable to cope with America, and Kia has to find her own strength. The author ably brings to life both Kia's Laotian homeland and her transition to Minnesota, and her descriptions of places and people animate the story, though the number of characters is sometimes confusing. Especially nice is the distinction she makes in the dialogue. When Kia is speaking English, the reader can hear that she is just learning, but in her conversations with her family and her thinking, she sounds like a 12-year-old girl who both treasures her way of life and is excited about learning new things. 2004, Hyperion Books for Children, Ages 9 to 12.
—Diane Carver Sekeres

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6-Known for her habit of standing on one leg and rubbing it with the other, 12-year-old Kia is lovingly called Little Cricket by her family. The Vangs are first seen in their Laotian village, and the narrative follows the dwindling family as they escape the North Vietnamese soldiers and search for safety by traveling to Thailand. Eventually Kia, her brother, and their grandfather make their way to St. Paul, MN. Brown tells the story as an omniscient narrator in simple straightforward language, staying with the child's point of view throughout and making frequent mention of the cultural underpinnings and beliefs. The book includes a pronunciation guide for the few Hmong words used in the text as well as some suggested readings and a short history of Hmong immigration. In addition to providing good information for children, this involving story emphasizes the resilience and perseverance of the characters rather than the suffering and pain they endured. Kia's friendship in her new home with an adult neighbor and her son serves as a warm balance to some of the more negative situations that occur. Similar in some ways to Pegi Deitz Shea's Tangled Threads: A Hmong Girl's Story (Clarion, 2003), this thoughtful title is more accessible. A poignant and insightful story of learning to live in a new land.-Carol A. Edwards, Douglas County Libraries, Castle Rock, CO Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Similar to Pegi Dietz Shea's Tangled Threads (2003), Brown's work describes a Laotian Hmong family's journey and adjustment to life in the US in the 1970s. The family, consisting of 12-year-old Kia Vang, the "Little Cricket" of the title, her older brother, and elderly grandfather, leave their Thai refugee camp for Minnesota. The subject is handled well, if simplistically, and the rich Hmong culture is treated respectfully. Kia, a relatable character, adapts to American life most readily, though not without difficulty. A skilled gardener, she achieves happiness and some financial success by planting a plot of her own and selling vegetables at the farmers' market. She finds acceptance and makes friends with two neighbors, one of whom is an outsider like herself. The story's ending suggests a satisfying melding of old and new. Winner of the newly renamed Paul Zindel First Novel Award. (author's note, pronunciation guide, bibliography) (Fiction. 10-12)