Latehomecomers guiding questions

Lines 9–15: What sense or senses does Yang’s description appeal to? What is the effect of her description?

• She keeps the bracelet even after it breaks, and she promises herself that she will have it repaired or recreated.

• The description appeals to the sense of sight: colors chipping, sloping porches, a small patch of green. The description emphasizes the family’s economic situation: They have been looking for a house for six months, yet a house in this condition appeals to them.

• She is excited about living in a house “that belonged to storybooks.” Yang is probably an avid reader

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Lines 16–25: Examine Yang’s comparison of her family’s situation to that of a pioneer family. What does the comparison reveal about her?

• Yang says that the entrance “was small, like an elevator.” It suggests a confined feeling, especially in light of the “humongous” homes mentioned in line 43.

• They believe their success will reflect well on the entire Hmong community, and make their family’s struggles worthwhile

• She is excited about living in a house “that belonged to storybooks.” Yang is probably an avid reader

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Lines 66–74: What simile does Yang use to give a first view inside the house? What is the effect of the comparison?

• Yang says that the entrance “was small, like an elevator.” It suggests a confined feeling, especially in light of the “humongous” homes mentioned in line 43.

• Someday; The repetition creates a hopeful feeling: the family is moving to a rundown house in a poor neighborhood, but they have hope that their lives will improve “someday.”

• She is growing and changing, while still trying to maintain the life and relationships she has always known.

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Lines 92–93: What simile does Yang use to give readers a final impression of the house? What does this comparison suggest about the house?

• They believe their success will reflect well on the entire Hmong community, and make their family’s struggles worthwhile.

• Yang says that the house “smells old, like the thrift shops.” The comparison reinforces the idea that the house is rundown, used, and perhaps cheap.

• It suggests that literature had a great impact on her as she was growing up.

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Lines 101–107: Which word or phrase is repeated in these lines? What idea or feeling does the repetition emphasize?

• Someday; The repetition creates a hopeful feeling: the family is moving to a rundown house in a poor neighborhood, but they have hope that their lives will improve “someday.”

• She is growing and changing, while still trying to maintain the life and relationships she has always known.

• Dawb is a good student who understands how to use what she learns, while Yang has difficulty expressing herself and connecting what she learns in school to real life.

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Lines 124–133: What does Yang mean when she says that she “pushed against the skin that contained” her?

• “might each have an easier one apart,” “your children see you cry,” “because long ago, when you were younger and you did not see so clearly, you had chosen them.” Her parents stayed together even when their lives became difficult, something Romeo and Juliet “never had the chance” to do.

• They believe their success will reflect well on the entire Hmong community, and make their family’s struggles worthwhile

• She is growing and changing, while still trying to maintain the life and relationships she has always known.

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Lines 154–162: What does Yang’s statement that she and her sister “wanted to make the life journeys of our family worth something” suggest about their views of their roles in the Hmong community?

• It suggests that literature had a great impact on her as she was growing up

• Dawb is a good student who understands how to use what she learns, while Yang has difficulty expressing herself and connecting what she learns in school to real life.

• They believe their success will reflect well on the entire Hmong community, and make their family’s struggles worthwhile

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Lines 163–172: What does Yang mean when she says that in comparison to her sister she “was lost”?

• Dawb is a good student who understands how to use what she learns, while Yang has difficulty expressing herself and connecting what she learns in school to real life.

• It suggests that literature had a great impact on her as she was growing up.

• “might each have an easier one apart,” “your children see you cry,” “because long ago, when you were younger and you did not see so clearly, you had chosen them.” Her parents stayed together even when their lives became difficult, something Romeo and Juliet “never had the chance” to do.

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Lines 171–193: What does the fact that Yang connects key events in her life to works of literature suggest about her?

• “might each have an easier one apart,” “your children see you cry,” “because long ago, when you were younger and you did not see so clearly, you had chosen them.” Her parents stayed together even when their lives became difficult, something Romeo and Juliet “never had the chance” to do.

• The metaphor shows the suffering of the living as well as their sorrow for those who died

• It suggests that literature had a great impact on her as she was growing up

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Lines 199–216: What language in these lines shows Yang’s parents persevering through hardships? Why does Yang believe that her parents are a better example of love than Romeo and Juliet?

• The metaphor shows the suffering of the living as well as their sorrow for those who died

• “might each have an easier one apart,” “your children see you cry,” “because long ago, when you were younger and you did not see so clearly, you had chosen them.” Her parents stayed together even when their lives became difficult, something Romeo and Juliet “never had the chance” to do.

• Yang uses words such as “hovered,” “French accent,” and “thick reading glasses” to describe the sights and sounds of their studying process. The image she creates shows the intensity and urgency of their studying

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