Summary

"Fatherland" is the final short story in The Refugees. It is narrated in third person, past tense, and it returns to the country of Vietnam itself. In the story, the protagonist, Phuong, was a 23 year old biology graduate who worked as a hostess at a tourist-class restaurant. She was the oldest of three siblings, who are the second set of children her father, Mr. Ly, had. Both sets of children were named the same names. The story is set in 2001, a year after President Clinton's visit to the country.

When the story opens, the reader does not necessarily realize that the setting is Vietnam. Phuong had grown up receiving annual letters and photographs of her father's other family. Her older sister was also named Phuong, and everything about the other girl made the protagonist feel lesser by comparison. The older Phuong went by the...