This book describes the immigration of tens of thousands of Cambodian refugees to the United States from their war-torn country in the early 1980s, highlighting the efforts of Khmer Americans to recreate the fabric of culture and identity in the aftermath of the Khmer holocaust. Based on long-term research among Cambodians residing in metropolitan Boston, this ethnography provides a portrait of the trials and tribulations of Khmer American culture, seen from the perspective of elders attempting to preserve Khmer Buddhism in a deeply unfamiliar world. With particular emphasis on Khmer conceptions of personhood, morality, and sexuality, the book considers how this cultural heritage influences the performance of Khmer children in U.S. schools and determines Khmer engagement with U.S. culture. The seven chapters include: (1) "Identity and Translation"; (2) "To Be Khmer Is To Be Buddhist"; (3) "Early Socialization: Observing the Child"; (4) "Moral Education: The Child within the Family"; (5) "Schooling in America"; (6) "Sexuality and Marriage"; and (7) "The Search for the Middle Path." (Contains approximately 160 references.) (SM)