The Chance: The true story of one girl's journey to freedom

"We did not risk death to come to the United States. There were no guarantees of anything. There were no promises. We risked death for a CHANCE." – Hung Quan, Muoi's brother.Finalist for the Oklahoma Book Awards in 2022 and the Next Generation Indie Book Awards in 2023, The Chance tells the story of Muoi Quan. At age nine, she watches in horror as Saigon falls to the Communists. A year later, the military invades her home and destroys her family's business. At age eleven, an escape attempt to China ends in Hanoi at the end of a rifle. When her older brother has the chance to leave Vietnam by boat in 1979, Muoi reluctantly goes to see him off. She is standing at the riverside when a twist of fate pushes her forward, onto the boat, taking the place of a stranger who did not show up. The story that follows is one of storms, pirates, abandonment, and perseverance of the human spirit.Read more