The Cleaving: Vietnamese Writers in the Diaspora

The first and only book to gather the voices and perspectives of Vietnamese diasporic authors from across the globe.   Edited by Isabelle Thuy Pelaud, Lan P. Duong, and Pulitzer Prize–winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Cleaving brings together Vietnamese artists and writers from around the world in conversation about their craft and how their work has been shaped and received by mainstream culture and their own communities. This collection highlights how Vietnamese diasporic writers speak about having been cleaved—a condition in which they have been separated from, yet still hew to, the country that they have left behind.   Composed of eighteen dialogues among thirty-seven writers from France, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Canada, Australia, Israel, and the United States, the book expands on the many lives that Vietnamese writers inhabit. The dialogues touch on family history, legacies of colonialism and militarism, and the writers' own artistic and literary achievements. Taken together, these conversations insist on a deeper reckoning with the conditions of displacement.  Featured writers: Hoai Huong Aubert-Nguyen, Amy Quan Barry, Doan Bui, Thi Bui, Lan Cao, Cathy Linh Che, André Dao, Duy Ðoàn, Lan P. Duong, Duong Vân Mai Elliott, Le Ly Hayslip, Matt Huynh, Violet Kupersmith, Thanhhà L?i, Vincent Lam, T.K. Lê, Tracey Lien, Marcelino Truong L?c , Nguy?n Phan Qu? Mai, Anna Möi, Beth (Bich) Minh Nguyen, Diana Khoi Nguyen, Hieu Minh Nguyen, Hoa Nguyen, Philip Nguy?n, Th?o Nguy?n, Vaan Nguyen, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Isabelle Thuy Pelaud, Andrew X. Pham, Aimee Phan, Abbigail Nguyen Rosewood, Bao Phi, Dao Strom, Kim Thúy, Paul Tran, Monique Truong, Minh Huynh Vu, Ocean Vuong  

Table of Contents:
Contents Foreword  Viet Thanh Nguyen Acknowledgments  INTRODUCTION: A CLEAVING, A LEAVING, A HEAVING  Lan P. Duong 1 • On Violence: There and Here  Kim Thúy and Ocean Vuong  Doan Bui and Beth (Bich) Minh Nguyen  Bao Phi and Dao Strom  Cathy Linh Che and Diana Khoi Nguyen  2 • Authorship and Authority: The Americas and Việt Nam  Monique Truong and Viet Thanh Nguyen  Lan Cao and Vincent Lam  Amy Quan Barry and Thanhhà Lại  3 • Writing Feminism and Disobedience  Hoai Huong Aubert-Nguyen and Vaan Nguyen  Abbigail Nguyen Rosewood and Violet Kupersmith  Thi Bui and Thảo Nguyễn  Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai and Hoa Nguyen  4 • Representation, Writing, Reception  Le Ly Hayslip and Dương Vân Mai Elliott  Anna Möi and Aimee Phan  Andrew X. Pham and Marcelino Trương Lực  Tracey Lien and André Dao  5 • Form and Future  T.K. Lê and Duy Đoàn  Hieu Minh Nguyen and Matt Huynh  Philip Nguyễn, Paul Tran, and Minh Huynh Vu  Conclusion: On Being a Writer at the Border  Isabelle Thuy Pelaud Coda  Viet Thanh Nguyen, Lan P. Duong, and Isabelle Thuy Pelaud Notes  Works Cited  About the Contributors  Index