Spirit of a Hummingbird: Memories from a Childhood on the Run

by Felicia Thai Heath

INSTANT Amazon Best Seller in Survival Biographies, in Emigration & Immigration Studies (Books), Asian American History, and in Poverty Studies

In Spirit of a Hummingbird , Felicia Thai Heath, the daughter of Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants who met in the United States, gives us a disquieting, eventful memoir based on her early childhood on the run with her father—a notorious Vietnamese kingpin and escaped convict—and her conflicted mother. Clever and mature beyond her age, young Felicia experienced poverty and witnessed abuse as her dysfunctional family bounced around in the United States and Canada. Amid all the tumult and terror, she found ways to love her family, educate herself, navigate her world, and discover her potential. Now she must decide how to live with the past—and whether her future can include her father. Spirit of a Hummingbird is an uncompromising look at family trauma, betrayal, fear, and helplessness and an inspiring testament to resilience, healing, and forgiveness.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Ebooks, Biography, Asia, Self Help

194 pages, Paperback

Published September 8, 2022

Reviews

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story of an immigrant family is very interesting and heartfelt. The author has overcome many hurdles on her way to adulthood. Her father's issues certainly added to the struggle. I would recommend this story to everyone.

My thanks to the author, Felicia Heath, and the publisher, River Grove Books, for my ecopy of this book, courtesy of a Goodreads Giveaway.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a kindle version of this book from the goodreads giveaways. Felica writes of being a daughter of immigrant parents. By the time she was in grammar school her dad was arrested for making money illegally. she spent part of her childhood going from home to home. being sexually assaulted by a cousin. She was bullied in school for being of Asian decent. When in middle school her mother married an older man who help provide for her and her younger siblings. When she was in medical school her father called from prison to announce he would be let out of jail soon. Most of her book is about her hard childhood. An interesting book.

[Jillian C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spirit of a Hummingbird is an important memoir highlighting the childhood of a first generation Asian American. The author, Felicia Thai Heath, grew up the daughter of a Vietnamese kingpin father on the run. She witnessed abuse and experienced extreme poverty in a highly dysfunctional family. Felicia’s story, although not over, ends with healing and triumph overcoming numerous adversities.

Trigger warnings: verbal, physical, and sexual abuse, family trauma

Thank you NetGalley and River Grove Books for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

[Thelma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spirit of a Hummingbird, the story of Felicia Thai. daughter of a mafia boss who was very aggressive and abusive with his wife and daughter, he didn't have any kind words or any time to care for his family, he pretended he cared but he only brought so much burdens and sadness.

Felicia's life was a roller coaster, she had to grow very fast after seeing and living many things she shouldn't have a such a young age, she lived with her aunt for a while, and her cousins bully her and did many atrocities she wasn't able to speak about or even say about, he aunt didn't believe any of the things Felicia told her, Felicia was once again abandoned to her faith and living the shouldn't have tho endured. This was one of the things I was left with no answer what happened to that evil cause that did so much harm to Felicia? also, did she really end up having a relationship with her father? so many questions

Felicia did what was best for her study study study, becoming someone to finally able to move forward and leave behind her past.

Felicia, I had a hard time writing this review, your story deserves more than what I've written, but I'm speechless to translate how much I appreciate you and your mother through the pages of your story, thank you for sharing what happened and what you went through, thank you for showing us how amazing, strong and resilient was your mom, she definitely deserves a standing ovation for what she endured. I personally don't like rating Memoirs because I feel it is the life of a person and can't be rated.

Felicia, You and Your mother are true heroines to me.

This was short but a very good book I'm super glad I read it and I definitely will recommend it

Thank you, NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group, River Grove Books, for the advanced copy of Spirit of a Hummingbird in exchange for my honest review.

[Colleen Chi-Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel, Spirit of a Hummingbird, is a memoir written by Dr. Felicia Thai Heath. I was gifted this ARC audiobook from NetGalley, the author, and River Grove Books, for my honest review. There is no category for choosing the "audiobook" option for this book, so my post indicates a Kindle read.

I began, stopped and started this memoir frequently due to the content, reality, and pain, that an IRL child/person experienced this kind of life as she grew up as the daughter of a Vietnamese Mafia father. She details the abuse to his wife and children, including Felicia, and as a result, they were often on the run/move between Boston and Canada, experiencing various forms of abuse, including extreme poverty, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. Since I was simultaneously, but not on purpose, reading another novel, non-fiction, about a dysfuctional family set in Chicago, I needed to alternate between them, and push myself to finish this.... not because it was dull, but because it was emotionally hard and draining.

As a female, mom, sister, family member, educational professional, and human being, who loves children, I cannot fathom how Felicity weathered all of her experiences and highly commend her for turning the table on that kind of life and continual trauma. Glass definitely half full for her. Bravo.

[Star Gater · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published: 05/09/23
Narrator: Felicia Thai Heath

Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf Audiobooks, River Grove Books for accepting my request to read and review Spirit of a Hummingbird.

Bright and cheerful cover misleads the content of the book. The author narrates and does a good job. If I notice this combo prior to picking up a book, I leave it. More often than not, I prefer a professional narrator.

This story is real. The author was the little girl abused and moved around while her father a Kingpin ran from police and possibly other gangs. She was the little girl whose father's mistress with their baby showed up to her home as well as her mother's, surprise? Yes, and surprise a man wouldn't keep the lights on or food in the one home and proof he wouldn't in two. But, she would show him respect.

This is the Vietnamese culture of screaming I am your parent and for that reason alone you will respect me. Again, a teaching I just don't understand. Her life was convoluted. The day to day necessities were a battle.

There is profanity

I would recommend from a sense of tradition and cultural exposure. From a parental perspective, things not to do.

[ForestGardenGal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ms. Heath tells a compelling story of growing up too fast, and living a turbulent life of confusion, fear, and of coping mechanisms. Her mother's story is a parallel plot that deserves a book all of its own.

I really enjoyed this book and the time spent getting to know her family members and to appreciate her family's story, but at the end, I felt abruptly thrown out the door.

Maybe it's too fresh to wax philosophical. Maybe there are issues still being dealt with. Maybe she needed to respect the privacy of her siblings and to protect her young children. All are understandable, but it felt like there is more she wanted to say that she is keeping buried... for now at least.

[Amy Bronstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing story of a young lady finding her path in life. Well worth the read.

[JoAnn CV · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a kindle copy of Spirit of a Hummingbird in a Goodreads giveaway. Thank you to Goodreads and the publisher. Book trigger warnings - neglect, physical and mental abuse, sexual abuse (which admittedly I had to skim over and not read in detail), and threat of suicide.

A relatively short and bingeable read, Spirit of a Hummingbird is Felicia Thai Heath’s first book. It may end up being her only book, as she is an anesthesiologist by trade. The telling of this story was clearly a therapeutic act for her, and I appreciate her sharing it with the world. Heath wrote this book holed up for a month, away from her husband and kids, focusing on telling her story. This story is as much about Heath as it is about her mother, who survived an unexpected escape from Vietnam as a preteen. America let Heath’s mother down, and by fifteen she was pregnant with the author. Heath’s father was also a Vietnamese immigrant, older than her mother, making his life in America via organized crime. Heath, her mother, and later her sister were dragged into a world of danger, disadvantage, and despair. There wasn’t even financial benefit for the three of them from Heath’s father’s crimes. Only pain. A brother came along just as her father was finally captured, and for the next 18 years Heath could move forward without her father. Until his early release from prison, where the book begins.

Heath does a great job jumping back and forth through timelines, something many memoirists attempt but not as many succeed. This could have been a much longer story I’m sure, with solid chunks of time summarized quickly. But she had a month, multiple kids, and a full time job. I think we’re lucky to have everything she was able to capture. Maybe down the road she’ll write something to fill in the spots and tell more of her life experiences. I’d be here for it.

I give this book four stars rather than five because some sections do show how rushed Heath was to put the story together. But for a first publication, it’s truly remarkable.

[Jenny K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to GoodReads and the author, Felicia Heath, for a free Kindle edition of this amazing book!

I absolutely loved ‘Spirit Of A Hummingbird’ and definitely recommend it to anyone looking for an excellent, page-turning, true-to-life book to read. I promise you won’t be disappointed!!

[Sandra Massey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

This book was wonderful from start to finish. Growing up with a father like the charcoal in this book must have been hard but dealing with the aftermath of childhood was probably harder.

[Charmaine D'souza · Rating 5 out of 5]

This autobiography of Felicia Thai Heath details the physical and emotional abuse her mother experienced from her father, a Vietnamese drug lord. Her mother, Felicia and her siblings were always on the run living between Canada and the US. During her childhood she did not have a good educational foundation. Her father spent years in jail and when released was back with the family making their lives miserable. Felicia overcame her childhood trauma after battling her demons and a period of alcoholism and substance abuse. She went to medical school and became a successful physician. As an adult she tried to reconcile with her father with some difficulty. This is a story of heartache, domestic abuse, resilience and strength. Felicia’s life could have turned out very different, mired in self doubt and a tale of emotional abuse mirroring her mothers. She overcame her personal demons and rose above all the horrors of her past and became a successful and wonderful person.

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

CW: bullying, sexual assault, child abuse via drug use, domestic violence.

Raw, honest, vulnerable. That's the best way to describe Heath's words. Going on a journey, diving into the cracks of immigration and the forgotten victims of political decisions.

Young Felicia is forced into parentication at ah early age. Then must untangle the past and present before they destroy the future.

This isn't a light read. I found it hard to put down. I wanted her to succeed. Beware of certain warnings, like violence against women and children. Easy 5 read with the author narrating.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for a review in exchange of an honest review.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this memoir in one sitting. I was interested because I grew up in Massachusetts and remember when Chinatown in Boston was considered "dangerous" during the 80's. Felicia writes about her childhood with her mother, a Vietnamese refugee, and her father, who was a gang kingpin. They bounce between Boston and Canada.

This was a very compelling read, and my only wish was that it was longer, and maybe a bit more about her adult life.

Thank you Netgalley and Greenleaf Book Group for the ARC!

[Read By Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This memoir had some good stuff going for it. I think Heath is good at setting up the horrible childhood she had and the way it impacted her. I really felt for her and her desire to have to her family be whole and not understanding what her dad's issue was. Unfortunately, this book is just too short. Most of it she is very young, and then it skips forward to her being an adult and then it ends, with barely any reflection or how her childhood impacted her. An extra 40-50 pages with some more depth would have gone a long way.

7/10

[Naila Foister · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this in a goodreads giveaway and it was honestly really interesting, although hard to get through, especially if you've suffered familial based trauma. Trigger warning for rape scene and abusive context (pretty much throughout the entire book). Still, a good read.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
I won this kindle copy in exchange for a review.

Well written and easy to be drawn into...just felt underdeveloped and rushed in some areas.

[Daniella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Resilience

[Abagail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and River Grove Books for sending me this digital copy for review consideration! All opinions are my own.

This book offers a harrowing account of the author’s childhood as the daughter of a gang kingpin. The story of an abusive father alone would be horrible enough, but the fact that he was also a violent criminal who constantly left his family while on jobs, was on the run after an escape from prison, and never sent home enough money to keep the family afloat makes it all the more distressing.

Felicia had to grow up so quickly that I often had to go back and double check how old she was when certain things happened, due to the shocking nature of the events and the way she responded, as victims of trauma and abuse often do, with maturity beyond her years. Unfortunately, it appears she rarely got to be a child.

I read this whole book in one day because it was both short and absorbing. I wish it wasn’t quite so short because the end felt a bit rushed. I am happy to see that the author has made a beautiful life for herself, but there is a very quick conclusion to her relationship with her father. In a matter of pages she decides to give him a chance, takes it back when he acts like a shitlord, and then decides to meet him where he’s at when he apologizes. She then briefly sums up her present relationship with him in the epilogue. After so much lead up to her father’s release, I would have liked to see a little more development once it actually happened.

However, it is hard to critique a book when the author is telling such a personal story. I do believe that, when sharing a vulnerable personal history, one has to respect how the author felt the most comfortable telling it!

I do recommend this book as long as you can stomach reading about some truly awful things. It is good to know that the author overcame so much sorrow and now has the happy family she deserved as a child.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

In Spirit of a Hummingbird, Felicia Thai Heath, the daughter of Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants who met in the United States, gives us a disquieting, eventful memoir based on her early childhood on the run with her father—a notorious Vietnamese kingpin and escaped convict—and her conflicted mother. Clever and mature beyond her age, young Felicia experienced poverty and witnessed abuse as her dysfunctional family bounced around in the United States and Canada. Amid all the tumult and terror, she found ways to love her family, educate herself, navigate her world, and discover her potential. Now she must decide how to live with the past—and whether her future can include her father.

Spirit of a Hummingbird is an uncompromising look at family trauma, betrayal, fear, and helplessness and an inspiring testament to resilience, healing, and forgiveness.

What Felicia endured is hard to fathom, but she does a great job of explaining and working through all the trauma she endured in her childhood in this enlightening memoir. Clearly she’s doing the work to grow and move on from it all- and providing some perspective for the rest of us along the way.

I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by the author herself- and you wouldn’t know she isn’t a professional narrator by the skillful and engaging job she does.

Thank you to author/ narrator Felicia Thai Heath, NetGalley, and Greenleaf Audiobooks for providing this ALC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Brie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of a Felicia, the daughter of Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants and her life growing up as the daughter of a notorious Vietnamese Mafia boss who was constantly on the run from authorities. He was in and out of Felicia’s life, often leaving her and her mother living in poverty while he was away, or at the abusive hands of his family members. It was an awful life to grow up in, and it was quite fascinating, yet heartbreaking, to hear a first hand account of the life of a child of a crime boss.

This was a very quick listen on audio, and Felicia narrates it herself. Now, an author of a memoir really owes the reader nothing, but I did struggle with the pacing and depth of this book. The beginning starts out strong, focusing much on her childhood, but then we jump ahead many years to when Felicia is in medical school and her father calls her to let her know he will be released from prison soon. This part of the story, of Felicia’s life, was told quickly, ended the book abruptly, and left me with many questions and wanting to know more. To be fair, the book does say “memories from childhood”, so maybe that’s on me for wanting the full story and not just memories. And maybe Felicia has her reasons for being vague and quick in her more recent years…protecting her family, herself perhaps?

All in all, I’m not sorry I listened to it since it was quick. Big thanks to Netgalley for the advanced audio copy for review. All thoughts my own.

[lilias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memoirs can be the heaviest of books. This is a short book, but it took me a while to get through it because some of the sections were particularly heavy. Felicia Thai Heath tells you her childhood story with direct language. I thank her for her honesty and vulnerability.

I thank the author for the giveaway win and copy of the book!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t have words for how beautiful and heartbreaking this book is. As the daughter of a Chinese Vietnamese immigrant myself, there is so much here that resonated with me—sometimes at a painful level.

With no disrespect toward the author and her candor in sharing her story, I feel like this story is my own alternate reality. So many names, places, and experiences are the same. Of course, some of them are very different too, and I want to honor her own unique story. But I find myself asking… Did our fathers ever cross paths on the refugee island that they both were on? What if her dad had gone to Iowa and mine to Massachusetts?

There are too many similarities for comfort, and I feel a sort of sad kinship to Felicia in all of it. But I’m grateful for her inspiring story of resilience. It’s a reminder that I can heal, too.

P.S. If you know me, and you decide to read this book, please talk to me about it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Greenleaf Audiobooks, and Felicia Thai Heath for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review. Your story has great impact.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spirit of a Hummingbird is the story of Felicia Thai, and the childhood that resulted from a father who was on the run, and a mother who was disadvantaged from the start. It's a compelling story, and an important one for folks to hear.

The book was captivating, and kept me focused on the story throughout, though I felt myself regularly wishing that more was being said, or perhaps more details were given. Of course, the author owes us nothing, but it felt like it teetered on the edge of feeling secretive still for a memoir situation. I'm unsure if there were other aspects at play, but I can't help but wonder what became of some of the other situations that went down.

All in, I'm glad I spent time with the book, and I'm very happy to hear that she didn't feel the need to stay connected to anyone due to blood alone, and has chosen to put herself and her family first.

Thank you NetGalley and River Grove Books for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

[Sarah Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to meet the author at a party in my hometown and we mainly chatted about work and kids when it was revealed to me that she has wrote this memoir. As a person in 2 book clubs I immediately downloaded the book and I am glad I did. Felicia is the daughter of immigrants from Vietnam. Her father was deeply involved in organized crime in the 1980s and 1990s and escaped from prison and spent 7 years on the run. That’s interesting in and of itself but then Felicia also talks about her mother’s untraditional (and unexpected) emigration from Vietnam to the US. Then her own story as a child put in impossible situations and having to deal with the weight of issues well beyond her years was riveting. I am so glad I read this and got insight into the life of someone who grew up so differently than me. She was already impressive to me as a doctor and mom of 4 but then hearing about everything she overcame was fascinating. Thank you for being so open and honest and vulnerable!

[Boop]

The story, in and of itself, was compelling enough to where I sped through this book in one sitting. Fraught with plenty of descriptions, it was very easy to imagine myself as a front-and-center witness to the author's perilous childhood. I would recommend this to anyone that is looking for a work that is both quick to read and/or focused on the experience of a first-generation kid... But don't expect deep emotional investment. The pacing accelerates tremendously, the further along the recollection, and despite this being a memoir, there remains a sense of detachment throughout.

My thanks to Dr. Heath, for the bravery that it required to share these memories, and for giving readers such as myself the opportunity to peruse such a unique work. Additional thanks to the publisher, River Grove Books, and Goodreads for hosting the giveaway through which I acquired a copy of this book.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spirit of a Hummingbird

I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway. Coming from a childhood of trauma myself, this memoir is touching. Most of it is told from the point-of-view of her childhood self. Going through this healing journey myself, I would have liked to hear more of what her adult self was thinking and feeling about what happened to her as a child and then how she has grown or healed from it. This point is kind of summarized as such in the ending of the book, but I would have liked to hear it more throughout the book in detail especially since the healing journey is a lot of reflection of the past and how we handle it in present time. I just want to say personally that I am proud of the author for overcoming and recognizing she is worth everything. I'm proud of her for becoming an anesthesiologist and showing her love and compassion to others.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars!
I’m really only knocking the .5 because I listened on audiobook and I’m so so particular about narration. Normally I prefer author narrated memoirs but there was something about the way she spoke in certain passages that I just didn’t prefer.

This was a wonderfully written and beautifully told memoir about Felicia’s life growing up with a less than stable family. Her dad was a major crime boss and her mom was constantly trying to claw her way out, leaving Felicia was lost in the cross hairs. The vulnerability she has is so admirable, saying she told her friends and coworkers her past without thought. And at the end, coming to peace with her relationship with her father and her understanding of her siblings unique relationships was such a nice way to end things.

[LaShanda Chamberlain · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the very first page, the writing effortlessly draws you into a captivating narrative that delves into themes of identity, complex family relationships, and the strength of resilience. Once I started reading, I could not put this book down. This memoir vividly portrays a childhood scarred by enduring abuse, neglect, and poverty. The author's courage is not only commendable but also deeply inspiring. I couldn't help but feel anger welling up as she recounted her father's abusive behavior and the sexual abuse she experienced at the hands of her older cousin; it was truly sickening.

Nevertheless, despite a challenging upbringing, her triumphant journey stands as a testament to the indomitable human spirit, offering inspiration to all who read it.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well penned personal story by Felicia, about her very tumultuous early years as the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants; her father was a violent kingpin of sorts, of Vietnamese gangs in the US and Canada. As the eldest of couple's three children, she had the strongest relationship with her father, who was finally imprisoned for 18 years. It is always amazing to me, when I read these kinds of memoirs, how young people with such a violent and dysfunctional background, are able to overcome their life's impediments and rise to professional success. Thank you to Goodreads for my selection as a giveaway winner for this book.