edited by Charles Waugh, Lien Nguyen and Van Giá
contributions by Van Toan Nguyen, Danh Lam Nguyen, Thanh Mai Nie, Li Di, Ngoc Hung Dinh, Tien Thuy Do, Bich Thuy Do, Thi Ngoc Hoai Ho, Hoai Luong Le, Duy Nghia Pham, Diep Phong, Trieu Hai Phan, Bich Hau Kieu, Ngoc Tu Nguyen, Anh Vu Nguyen, Vinh Nguyen Nguyen, Dinh Tu Nguyen, The Hung Nguyen and Binh Nguyen Duong
translated by Hung Nguyen, The Que Le, The Quy Le, Peter Ross, Thuy Tranviet and Thi Tuyet Mai Vu
Northwestern University Press, 2017
Paper: 978-0-8101-3467-6 | eISBN: 978-0-8101-3468-3
Library of Congress Classification PL4378.82.E5W55 2017
Dewey Decimal Classification 895.9223408

ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
ABOUT THIS BOOK
Wild Mustard, an anthology of prizewinning short fiction by contemporary Vietnamese writers, throws into relief the transformations of self and place that followed Vietnam’s turn toward a market economy. In just three decades, since the 1986 policy known as doi moi (renovation) ended collectivization and integrated Vietnam into world markets, the country has transformed from one of the poorest and most isolated on earth into a dynamic global economy. The nineteen stories in this volume capture the kaleidoscopic experiences of Vietnam's youth, navigating between home and newly expanded horizons, as they seek new opportunities through migration, education, and integration not only into their nation but into the world.

In the tradition of the "Under 40" collections popularized by magazines such as the New Yorker and Granta, but with greater stakes and greater differences between the previous generation of writers and this new one, Wild Mustard seeks to change how North American readers think of Vietnam. Escaping the common fixation on the Vietnam War and its aftermath, these stories reflect the movement and dynamism of the young Vietnamese who locate themselves amid the transnational encounters and proliferating identities of a global economy.