Little Kim remembers only three short sentences uttered by her mother to her when she was four years old and living in a Vietnam village when it was bombed:
"Kim, come to me."
"Don't be afraid."
"I will always be with you."
Words to remember after her mother died in the attack. Phrases to carry in her heart when she was taken by American soldiers to the China Beach orphanage in Da Nang run by Ong and Ba Jones. Words that enabled her to survive even with impaired vision. Words she repeats when she vows to help her doll feel safe.
Always with You is written by Ruth Vander Zee and based on a true story. Kim now lives with a family in Chicago but is still only able to see hazy images. With illustrations by Ronald Himler, this touching story reveals the tragedy of the war in Vietnam and the terrible toll it has taken on the orphans from that time, who number between 300,000 and 800,000.
Vander Zee's picture book show how nurturing and loving words have a healing power and can serve as a lifeline to the survivors of the senseless brutality of war.
