Critical Refugee Studies

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 Prizeâ"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 cleavedâ"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, Andr© Dao, Duy Äo n, Lan P. Duong, DÆ°Æ¡ng V¢n Mai Elliott, Le Ly Hayslip, Matt Huynh, Violet Kupersmith, Thanhh  Laº¡i, Vincent Lam, T.K. Lª, Tracey Lien, Marcelino TrÆ°Æ¡ng La»±c , Nguya»n Phan Quaº Mai, Anna M¶i, Beth (Bich) Minh Nguyen, Diana Khoi Nguyen, Hieu Minh Nguyen, Hoa Nguyen, Philip Nguya»n, Thaº£o Nguya»n, Vaan Nguyen, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Isabelle Thuy Pelaud, Andrew X. Pham, Aimee Phan, Abbigail Nguyen Rosewood, Bao Phi, Dao Strom, Kim Thºy, Paul Tran, Monique Truong, Minh Huynh Vu, Ocean Vuong