Urban Life Experience Book Discussion Series

  The Urban Life Experience Book Discussion Series continued on Saturday June 1 st to discuss Thi Bui’s graphic memoir: The Best We Could Do . Thi Bui wrote and illustrated her book, which describes her parents’ lives in Vietnam, and the family’s decision to flee the country for the United States in 1978, when Bui was three years old. The book also describes their lives as refugees in the United States. For example, Bui’s parents had both been teachers in Vietnam, but Bui’s mother could only get a factory job here in the United States. Her father fell into a deep depression and didn’t work at all. This isn’t just a story about a family fleeing conflict but also a story about family dynamics.      Thi Bui  This is our first foray into g raphic n ovels. It’s the National Endowment for the Arts choice this year for The Big Read.     Barb started us off, saying, " It’s a different method of reading. Because you’re used to just tracking the words, now I’m focusing on facia