Butterfly Yellow

Butterfly Yellow opens with two different characters traveling through the same landscape, each fueled by a specific goal. Hằng is in search of her brother, from whom she has been separated for over six years; LeeRoy is in search of his idol, Bruce Ford, whom he has admired all his life. The pursuit of a dream or a goal, and the consequences of the reality not matching up to the expectation, is a major theme explored in the book through each of these characters’ journeys.

Hằng remembers the exact number of days, months, and years since Linh was taken to the United States. Since that day, her entire family’s goal has been to find a way to retrieve him. The efforts of the past six years have culminated in her finally arriving in the United States. Notably, Hằng’s dream is fueled in equal parts by guilt at having inadvertently brought about her brother’s fate, a sense of responsibility in needing to right her mistake, and the unwavering focus drilled into her by her grandmother. The resulting determination has allowed Hằng to survive all manner of trauma in pursuit of the goal, from the deaths of her family members to the physical suffering she has endured in her journey from Vietnam to America. So steadfast is she in her focus, she has not even allowed herself to grieve her lost loved ones yet.

LeeRoy, too, is in pursuit of a goal, through a vastly different one. His admiration for the cowboy life that he has read and heard about all his life, from the comfort of his urban home in Austin, has lit a fantastical desire in him to become one himself. LeeRoy’s idolatry of Bruce Ford in particular has set him on a journey where he hopes to meet the man himself, and perhaps join him in the cowboy life. LeeRoy has no real idea of what that life will entail, however, evident from his brand-new clothing and accoutrements, right down to his red truck, purchased for the sole purpose of this journey. The only authentic paraphernalia he owns is his grandfather’s bareback buckle, and even LeeRoy senses that he has not earned the right to wear it yet.

Hằng and LeeRoy meet different setbacks and disappointments in pursuit of their respective dreams. Initially, Hằng encounters a dead-end at the original address in Amarillo she has spent years memorizing. Even after she is redirected to the right place and finds her brother, she is faced with a possibility she never imagined: David does not remember nor recognize Hằng and sees her as nothing more than a disruption to his current life. LeeRoy, similarly, is not welcomed into the fold by the other cowboys he initially encounters; he is sneered at, called a “rhinestone cowboy,” tossed out of an establishment before he can even meet Bruce Ford, and thoroughly hustled at a midnight rodeo he later attends. When he does encounter everyday realities of a cowboy’s life on Mr. Morgan’s ranch, he is quickly disillusioned by its hard labor and perpetual experiences of exhaustion and hunger.

Yet both characters remain resilient and adaptive in the face of their unfulfilled dreams, perhaps qualities that further underline their connection. Rather than succumb to anger and despair over David’s initial rejection, Hằng opens her heart to the situation, understanding and accepting David’s new life. She finds a way to stay close to him and build a new life alongside him. LeeRoy, too, goes back home at the end of the summer, but with plans to return later in the year to watch a rodeo championship. The joy of the relationships he has built over the summer, especially with Hằng, has made the summer worthwhile enough to LeeRoy that he is willing to move forward.