Oakland Asian Cultural Center | Simone Book Release and Reading
On Sunday, September 22, 2024, we celebrated the release of “Simone,” an exciting new picture book with words by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen and art by illustrator Minnie Phan. “Simone” is an unforgettable story of a Vietnamese American girl whose life is transformed by a wildfire.
About the Speakers
Viet Thanh Nguyen
Viet Thanh Nguyen’s debut novel, The Sympathizer, won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, is a New York Times bestseller and is now an HBO TV series directed by Park Chan-wook. He is the editor of The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives and the Library of America volume for Maxine Hong Kingston and he co-authored Chicken of the Sea, a children’s book, with his then six-year-old son, Ellison. His most recent books are The Committed, the sequel to The Sympathizer, and his second children’s book, Simone, illustrated by Minnie Phan, an unforgettable story of a Vietnamese American girl whose life is transformed by a wildfire.
Minnie Pham
Minnie Phan is a Vietnamese American illustrator and designer creating visual communications that spark delight. Her debut picture book was The Yellow Áo Dài, written by Hanh Bui. Minnie’s work also includes animation and comics, and she has created art for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Public Library, and a 250 square foot mural for Google among others. Her most recent children’s book publication is Simone, written by Pulitzer-Prize winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen.
