Timber and Lua - by Lily Hoàng & VI Khi Nào

About the Book

"Timber & Lua exists in duality as both original, innovative collaboration between Lily Hoáang and Vi Khi Náao and their self-translations of said work. Comprised of ten short experimental stories, Timber & Lua is written in three different languages: Vietlish, Vietnamese, and English. Similar to Samuel Beckett and Vladimir Nabokov, who translated their own work (from English to French and from Russian to English, respectively), Hoáang and Náao extend that makeshift "tradition" by hybridizing their translation to graft the genetic material of one language (English) and the genetic material of another language (Vietnamese) to produce a new literary diasporic genre. From love story to the speculative to fairy tale, these ten stories accentuate Hoáang and Náao's dynamic, eccentric range. Timber & Lua coincides with the fiftieth anniversary of the Fall of Saigon (1975-2025), as a diasporic literary contribution and commemorative celebration"-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

AWARD-WINNING CO-AUTHORS - PEN OPEN BOOKS AWARD WINNER - PEN USA NONFICTION BOOK AWARD FINALIST - Co-Authors Lily Hoàng and Vi Khi Nào present TIMBER AND LUA

Ten short stories written by Lily Hoàng and Vi Khi Nào explore a range of styles from love stories to speculative fiction and fairy tales.

In this inventive collaboration, Hoàng and Nào blend Vietnamese, English, and Vietlish, creating a fresh, dynamic voice that captures the complexity of the Vietnamese-American experience. Their stories dive into themes of generational trauma, identity, and cultural clash, offering everything from love stories pieced together from memory, to folklore and fantasy, to post-apocalyptic worlds where Vietnamese-American identities are reimagined.

Timber and Lụa is playful, moving, and full of surprises. The authors experiment with language and translation, showing how meaning can shift and change between cultures. Released on the fiftieth anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, this collection is both a celebration of diasporic voices and a tribute to the power of storytelling across generations.

About the Author

Lily Hoàng is the author of nine books, including Underneath (winner of the Red Hen Press Fiction Award), A Bestiary (PEN/USA Nonfiction Award finalist), and Changing (recipient of a PEN/Open Books Award). She is a professor of literature at UC San Diego, where she teaches in their MFA in Literary Arts. She lives in San Diego, California.

Vi Khi Nào is the author of many books and is known for her work spanning poetry, fiction, theatre, film, and interdisciplinary collaborations, most recently The Italy Letters (Melville House) and The Six Tones of Water, coauthored with Sun Yung Shin (Ricochet). Recognized as a former Black Mountain Institute fellow, Vi Khi Nào received the Jim Duggins Outstanding Mid-Career Novelist Prize in 2022. She lives in Iowa City, Iowa. https: //www.vikhinao.com