'The Mountain in the Sea' Is a Meditation on Myths, Monsters, and the Mind
“A myth,” said existentialist psychologist Rollo May, “is a way of making sense in a senseless world.” Humans need myths and legends to survive. And they need us to survive too; it’s how we’ve learned...
Michael Tatarski in Loạt Soạt
A Study of the Mekong Through Stories Told on the River
Much like humanity, great systems of the natural world rely on connectivity to thrive.
Paul Christiansen in Loạt Soạt
Saigoneer Bookshelf: The Instruction Manual of Phillips H92X Offers Something for Everyone
Engaging plot or strong characters? Fantastic escapism or insightful depictions of the real world? A sweeping epic across generations and nations, or a deep examination of a brief moment in time? What...
Michael Tatarski in Loạt Soạt
A Wildly Original Intermingling of Tales From Vietnam, Past and Present
In the Saigoneer office — which I haven't actually seen in person for months — a common concern is the prevalence of the war in literature about Vietnam. Even among younger writers, particul...
Paul Christiansen in Loạt Soạt
Saigoneer Bookshelf: 'Other Moons' Aims to Amplify Voices of Vietnam's Wartime Writers
Why must we continue talking about war?
Saigoneer Bookshelf: Portraits of Frontline Workers From Inside Quarantine
In Con Đã Về Nhà - I'm Home, Tăng Quang documents his two-week stint in quarantine at Military School Zone 7 in District 12 of Saigon with a combination of paintings and prose.
Paul Christiansen in Loạt Soạt
Saigoneer Bookshelf: The Different Dealings of Trauma in 'Birds of Paradise Lost'
“I just can’t get the voices out my head,” Andrew Lam explains of his writing process.
Saigoneer Bookshelf: Finding Hong in Gangster Noir Thriller ‘Dragonfish’
For those of us who have read countless books by Vietnamese authors and members of the diaspora, the novel Dragonfish is not just one more installment of ethnic literature or postwar fiction.
Paul Christiansen in Loạt Soạt
'The Mountains Sing,' a Quintessential Vietnamese Novel, Written in Memories
As American bombers roared over the horizon preparing to drop fire and misery, air raid sirens screeched and people throughout Hanoi scrambled to find safety.
Thi Nguyen in Loạt Soạt
Saigoneer Bookshelf: Revisiting 'Dumb Luck' by Vu Trong Phung
Published in 1938, Dumb Luck, or Số Đỏ, remains one of Vietnam's most popular and controversial novels. Vu Trong Phung was fined by the French colonial administration in Hanoi in 1932 for his stark po...
Paul Christiansen in Literature
A Radio Program Puts Vietnamese Poetry in the Limelight With Bilingual Readings
"Lanterns Hanging on the Wind" features 18 poems read in Vietnamese and translated into English that span themes, styles, time periods and locations to give listeners a broad introduction to the natio...
Paul Christiansen in Literature
Meet the Author of the Most Important Vietnamese Novel You've Never Read
When the wind strafes Da Ngan’s window, seedpods shake and rattle like spent bullet casings in the tamarind tree that Americans planted decades ago. They also built the large apartment complex where s...
