The first book devoted exclusively to the study of changing family household, gender, and generational relations within the Vietnamese-American community. It is valuable not only because it shatters the stereotype of the unchanging Confucian family but also because it provides a testable framework for tracing patterns of relative economic success and failure in Vietnamese and possibly other communities. -- James Freeman, author of "Hearts of Sorrow: Vietnamese-American Lives" This book is valuable not only because it shatters the stereotype of the unchanging Confucian family but also because it provides a testable framework for tracing patterns of relative economic success and failure in Vietnamese and possibly other communities. This is an excellent book. I recommend it highly. -- James Freeman, San Jose State University

In recent years the popular media have described Vietnamese Americans as the quintessential American immigrant success story, attributing their accomplishments to the values they learn in the traditional, stable, hierarchical confines of their family. Questioning the accuracy of such family portrayals, Nazli Kibria draws on in-depth interviews and participant observation with Vietnamese immigrants in Philadelphia to show how they construct their family lives in response to the social and economic challenges posed by migration and resettlement. To a surprising extent, the "traditional" family unit rarely exists, and its hierarchical organization has been greatly altered.