THE SONG POET A Memoir of My Father

When an author narrates her own work, especially memoir, there's always the danger of disappointing the listener who hopes for enhanced intimacy with the story. Not so with Kao Kalia Yang's moving performance, a tribute to her father, the Hmong song poet Bee Yang. In telling her father's story, Yang offers penetrating insight into the Hmong experience, beginning in Laos before the Vietnam War and moving through refugee resettlement and present-day life in the U.S. Yang's high-pitched, accented voice brims with affection for her subject. At times, her pacing is rushed, and her articulation compromised, but these moments are easily overlooked. Yang's tender narration underscores the lyricism and love that mark this story. When her voice lowers and cracks, listeners will feel the same lump in their own throats. A.S. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2017]