Vietnamese-American poet and novelist exploring family trauma and identity, author of On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
To be glad, to be full of life in a world that often wants to crush you — that is an act of rebellion.
Every day I choose life. Not because it's always easy, but because life is worth the choice.
I'm not quite Vietnamese, I'm not quite American. I'm something in between, and that gives me a unique view of both cultures.
Hope is not naive. It's the most courageous choice you can make when the world tells you there is none.
Language is your first home. It gives you a place to be. For me, English was salvation because it gave me a voice when I had lost one.
When I write, I speak about pain, but I also describe the beauty that coexists with that pain. Life is not black and white.
I came into this life with suffering in my body. But I also came with love. And that love saved my life.