Last Airlift

Last Airlift is the true story of the last Canadian airlift operation that left Saigon and arrived in Toronto on April 13, 1975. Son Thi Anh Tuyet was one of 57 babies and children on that flight. Based on personal interviews and enhanced with archive photos, Tuyet's story of the Saigon orphanage and her flight to Canada is an emotional and suspenseful journey brought to life by award-winning children's author, Marsha Skrypuch.

Teachers and librarians can share this biography to help students understand the refugee experience. Tuyet’s story, courage and tenacity will likely touch the hearts of readers. The inclusion of photographs add to the authenticity of this Vietnamese orphan’s journey from orphanage in Vietnam to a home in Canada. An important book to share for Social Studies curriculum when teaching Responsible Citizenship and Canada’s Interactions with the Global Community.

Teacher’s guide available (http://pajamapress.ca/resource/last_airlift_teaching_guide/)

Also available: One Step at a Time: A Vietnamese Child Finds Her Way by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch

Author available for class visits. @MarshaSkrypuch

Thought-provoking, heartrending and inspirational, author Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch’s first non-fiction book chronicles one woman’s account of a little-known piece of Canadian history: the Ontario government-sponsored Operation “Babylift.”

In April 1975, South Vietnamese orphans were airlifted from Saigon and flown to Ontario where they were adopted by Canadian families. This military maneuver saved interracial babies (with American blood) and disabled children from being killed by the Viet Cong. Written from the perspective of eight-year-old Tuyet, who is crippled from polio, the book gives the reader vivid insight into life in a Saigon orphanage where children never see the sky and subsist amidst a soundtrack of warfare. Tuyet’s story reveals not only the privations and misplacement caused by war but the assumptions made by well-meaning people about the desirability of Western customs and middle-class values. Plentiful food, her own room and her first family initially cause Tuyet mistrust, discomfort and even terror.

This simply written but masterfully perceptive story of human resilience and courage belongs on every school and public library shelf. Although it could be read aloud to Grade 3 students and independently by Grades 4 to 8 students (e.g., for social studies or language units), the narrative easily captures an adult. Forchuk Skrypuch, who has received numerous awards for her historical novels, enriches this slender book with photos and official documents. Historical and author’s notes, detailing relevant background to Tuyet’s plight and the author’s research methods, make engaging additions alongside a list of further resources and an index.

Tuyet was one of 57 orphans airlifted from Saigon to Toronto during the final days of the Vietnam War. As an older child, Tuyet feared that she would not be adopted like the other children were. Based on personal interviews and enhanced with archival photos, Tuyet’s story of the Saigon orphanage and her flight to Canada is an emotional and suspenseful journey.