In 1980, Y-Dang Troeung’s family, Cambodian refugees, were relocated to Canada. Their arrival was well-documented, creating a public narrative of a happy “arrival”. Y-Dang’s book revisits this moment and contrasts it with the hidden truths of her family’s experiences. She narrates her family’s survival through the Cambodian genocide, her childhood in refugee camps and rural Ontario, and her personal journey dealing with her son’s illness and her own terminal disease diagnosis. The book offers a clear-eyed look at refugee life, the struggle for gratitude, academic pursuits, and love.