The Girl Behind the Fence

The Girl Behind the Fence

A Refugee's Journey from Vietnam to Freedom

By Miangel Lanpoint

She was nine years old when she left everything behind. She was sixteen when she finally found freedom.

In the aftermath of the Vietnam War, Miangel grows up in the sugarcane fields of southern Vietnam, surrounded by her brothers, her mother's unwavering love, and the quiet fear that follows her father-a former South Vietnamese Special Forces officer.

When political persecution threatens their future, her father makes an impossible decision: the family must escape.

But freedom comes at a terrible price.

At just nine years old, Miangel leaves behind her grandmother, her childhood home, and the only world she has ever known. With her mother, five brothers, and a newborn baby, she embarks on a dangerous journey across borders, through unfamiliar lands, and onto a crowded fishing boat battling the unforgiving sea.

Surviving the ocean is only the beginning.

Behind the barbed-wire fences of Hong Kong's refugee camps, Miangel spends seven years waiting for a country to call home. As childhood slips away, she witnesses injustice, separation, despair, and extraordinary acts of kindness. Between moments of fear and unexpected laughter, she struggles to understand what freedom truly means-and discovers the courage to find her own voice.

Inspired by the author's extraordinary real-life journey, The Girl Behind the Fence is a deeply moving historical coming-of-age novel about family, sacrifice, resilience, and the enduring hope of a child who refuses to stop dreaming.

Because sometimes the hardest journey isn't escaping the place that holds you captive. It's holding on to hope long enough to reach the other side.

For readers ages 15 and older who appreciate powerful stories of survival, historical fiction, immigration, and the courage of the human spirit.