Summary

The novel is preceded by a brief author’s note explaining the historical context of some of the novel. In the 1960s, the country of Laos was engaged in a civil war between the Communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government (RLG). America’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) supported the RLG by training soldiers and by dropping an extremely high number of bombs on Laos. There are many dangerous unexploded bombs still on the ground in Laos today. The novel opens in Laos in 1969. The story opens in an unspecified, semi-rural area that has been ravaged by bombings. A large house that used to belong to a wealthy Frenchman has been converted into a field hospital. Among the occupants of the house are three friends: a boy named Prany, his younger sister Noi, and a boy named Alisak. The boys are 17 years old...