Essays

Lithub | Viet Thanh Nguyen on the Cover of His New Memoir

“It often feels like a cover designer I have not met has captured some dimension of the book I have not been aware.”—Viet Thanh Nguyen writes for Lithub. The book is finished, in one sense, and not finished in another sense. Story and words are there, copy editing is done, pages laid out, an ISBN… (read more)


LitHub | Back to School for Everyone: Writers and the World with Viet Thanh Nguyen

Viet Thanh Nguyen on Writing as Commitment to Both Art and Politics for LitHub. I taught this class for undergraduates interested in editing and…(read more)

Asking “What About…?” Is Essential to Achieving Justice | The Nation

Selective empathy prevents us from making connections. What about the American bombing of Cambodia? Viet Thanh Nguyen argues that asking “What about…?” in this…(read more)

My Young Mind Was Disturbed By a Book. It Changed My Life.

Viet Thanh Nguyen shares his opinions on the power of books on the young mind for The New York Times. When I was 12…(read more)

I Can’t Forget the Lessons of Vietnam. Neither Should You.

Viet Thanh Nguyen writes about the parallels between the fall of Saigon and the withdrawal of troops in Kabul in this op-ed for the…(read more)

Advice for Artists Whose Parents Want Them to Be Engineers

Viet Thanh Nguyen shares advice on how to pursue art against your parents’ wishes in this op-ed for the New York Times. When I…(read more)

The Beautiful, Flawed Fiction of ‘Asian American’

Viet Thanh Nguyen contemplates the creation of the ‘Asian American’ identity in this op-ed for The New York Times. One is not born an…(read more)

From colonialism to Covid: Viet Thanh Nguyen on the rise of anti-Asian violence

Viet Thanh Nguyen reflects on his life as a Vietnamese American, and the history of anti-Asian violence. On 16 March eight people were killed…(read more)

Bipartisan political rhetoric about Asia leads to anti-Asian violence here

Viet Thanh Nguyen and Janelle Wong reflects on the cyclical history of anti-Asian violence, and what that means today in this op-ed for The…(read more)

Chop Shop: American Hustle

Viet Thanh Nguyen remarks on Ramin Bahrani’s presentation of the darker side of America in this review of Chop Shop for The Criterion Collection.…(read more)

I Actually Like Teaching on Zoom

Viet Thanh Nguyen reflects on the current climate of Zoom teaching and the benefits of online teaching in this op-ed for The New York…(read more)

What Amanda Gorman Teaches Us About Our Shared America

Viet Thanh Nguyen shares his thoughts on Amanda Gorman’s poem and libraries as shared spaces for Time magazine. Amanda Gorman moved me deeply, as she…(read more)

Lý do tại sao lá cờ miền Nam Việt Nam tung bay trong cuộc bạo động ở Điện Capitol Tiến sĩ (Việt Thanh Nguyễn)

SBTN provides a Vietnamese translation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s op-ed about the South Vietnamese flag and the Capitol riot. The op-ed was originally published…(read more)

There’s a reason the South Vietnamese flag flew during the Capitol riot

Viet Thanh Nguyen explores the connection between the South Vietnamese flag, nationalism, and the radicalized nostalgia for a lost country for the Washington Post.…(read more)

‘Minari’ is about immigrants who speak Korean. That doesn’t make it ‘foreign.’

In response to the dialogue surrounding Minari, Viet Thanh Nguyen asks what makes a language foreign in this op-ed for The Washington Post. The…(read more)

The Post-Trump Future of Literature

Viet Thanh Nguyen shares his thoughts on the changes of political literature in the coming era for this New York Times op-ed. Donald Trump…(read more)