The book introduces President Ho Chi Minh's letters to America, from students, women, ordinary people, journalists to officers or senators, Secretary of State and President.
At the invitation of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, from September 10-11, US President Joe Biden paid a state visit to Vietnam .
President Vo Van Thuong recently received President Joe Biden.
The gift that President Vo Van Thuong chose to give President Joe Biden is a special book in both content and form.
The book is called "A man, a path and a history: HO CHI MINH - LETTER TO THE USA" . That is the man Ho Chi Minh. That is also the path the Vietnamese people have chosen. And that is the history of the struggle for independence, freedom for the nation and the building of a prosperous and civilized Vietnam.
President Vo Van Thuong received President Joe Biden at the Presidential Palace.
The book includes letters from President Ho Chi Minh to the United States. The first letter was written on June 18, 1919 from Paris, France under the name Nguyen Ai Quoc when he was only 29 years old and sent to the US Secretary of State. The last letter was written on August 25, 1969 and sent to President Richard Nixon, seven days before President Ho Chi Minh passed away. On behalf of the Writers' Association Publishing House, I wrote the introduction to the book. Here is the full text of the introduction:
The book case cover is made of blue glazed ceramic, wood and leather.
One man, one road and one history
This is a small, humble book but contains a boundless compassionate heart and a great thought of a great man: HO CHI MINH.
The book introduces President Ho Chi Minh's letters to the United States, from students, women, ordinary people, journalists to officers, senators, secretaries of state and presidents. Regardless of the historical circumstances, to whomever and for what reason, the letters contain a noble humanitarian spirit, a desire for peace, a will to fight for independence, freedom and national pride.
The first letter was written in 1919 under the name of the patriotic young man Nguyen Ai Quoc and the last letter was written in 1969 signed Ho Chi Minh, President of an independent country. The short letters spanned half a century (1919 – 1969) but built a portrait of a great man named HO CHI MINH, built a righteous path and built a proud history of the Vietnamese people.
And the letters of an ordinary man named HO CHI MINH have become a priceless heritage of a nation.
Hanoi, August 2023
Book cover
This book was designed by photographer Duong Minh Long. The cover of the book box is made of blue-glazed ceramic by Hue artisans. The materials used to make the box and book are wood and leather.
The book is handmade in a delicate, simple and very formal way. Inside the box is a book with letters and related images taken from many sources such as the Ho Chi Minh Institute, the Central Party Office Archives, the Ho Chi Minh Museum, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nhan Dan Newspaper, United States – Vietnam Relations 1945-1967. US government printing office, Washington, 1971…
In particular, many portraits of President Ho Chi Minh in this book were taken by Western photographers and journalists. We have kept all the English translations of the letters intact to ensure historical accuracy. There are some letters that do not have translations, and the Writers Association Publishing House has organized the best possible translation so that foreign readers can understand the core spirit of those letters.
If we count the time from the first letter written under the name of the patriotic young man Nguyen Ai Quoc, more than a century has passed, and the last letter written by a man named Ho Chi Minh has been more than half a century.
Time passes with many events and changes in Vietnam as well as in the world. But the love for the Fatherland, the love for humanity, the desire for freedom and the unshakable will for Freedom of a person representing his nation have never changed and will never change. That is the great message from the letters in this book. And I think, that is the reason why President Vo Van Thuong chose the book as a gift carrying the message of a nation to give to US President Joe Biden.
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