Dia’s Story Cloth: The Hmong People’s Journey of Freedom, by Dia Cha

Dia’s Story Cloth: The Hmong People’s Journey of Freedom 
by Dia Cha
illustrated by Chue and Nhia Thao Cha
New York: Lee & Low Books, 1998
ISBN 9781880000632


Annotation 
Dia’s Story Cloth explores various facets of the Hmong experience, including traditional customs, war, survival, new beginnings, life in America, and freedom. Locations mentioned include Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and the United States of America.

Commentary 
This book addresses aspects of Hmong culture and the stitchery techniques used to pass on the culture to the younger generations through “story cloth”. Born in Laos, Dia and her family fled to Thailand to escape displacement, only to encounter a refugee camp experience lasting four years prior to arriving in America. Included after the story is commentary by the Curator of Ethnology at the Denver Museum of Natural History. This book will allow instructors and students to explore themes of Asian and Asian American cultures, Hmong, immigration, multigenerational, war, social studies and sociology. Freedom is a universal term in all cultures, the story teaches.

No author’s website
Media: watercolor, colored pencil, embroidery thread and cloth