Phan Thi Vang Anh's literature is still sharp and warm.

The sharing session had the participation of Dr. Nguyen Thi Hau, critic Le Hong Lam and writer Huynh Trong Khang to present unique and objective reflections on author Phan Thi Vang Anh in her return to the literary world through the new collection of essays and short stories, Ti's Family Story (and many other families' stories) .

From left to right: Dr. Nguyen Thi Hau, writer - editor Huynh Trong Khang (moderator) and critic Le Hong Lam in the talk show launching Ti's story (and stories of many other families) organized by Nha Nam

PHOTO: THE SANG

At this talk, readers were surprised to discover that it had been a long time since Phan Thi Vang Anh published a book, since her work Small Notes of a Horse Rider (2016). Although the author was not present, the talk was still lively, from Phan Thi Vang Anh's literature to many social issues.

The collection includes essays and short stories that, according to critic Le Hong Lam, are about a thousand words long, but "she has sketched out a long story about current events", although her intention is not to follow what is "hot" or prominent in society.

The book Ti's Family Story (and many other families' stories) is published by the Writers Association Publishing House and Nha Nam.

PHOTO: THE SANG

As a careful reader and observer of Phan Thi Vang Anh's writing process, Le Hong Lam has "distilled" the literary quintessence of this female writer with adjectives such as sharp, concise, humorous and very charming. He said that, right from her appearance on the literary scene in the 1990s, Phan Thi Vang Anh caused surprise with her seemingly non-reflexive writing style, as well as having determined her writing style very early on.

Dr. Nguyen Thi Hau agrees: "It is true that Phan Thi Vang Anh still shows sharpness - like a scalpel dissecting social issues", but after a long silence until now, the writer has become warmer. Accordingly, Ti's Story (and many other stories) write about small, lovely stories, but are still sharp enough to have warnings through the words.

She said, writing short is very difficult, because the writer has to work hard on words, but Phan Thi Vang Anh has done that very well in this latest book (as she did with her previous books), "closing" each story with "expensive" sentences and leaving the remaining explosion for the readers. What is worth reading about Phan Thi Vang Anh's literature is that each story and essay of the author is like "a carefully trimmed flower" but hidden within it are profound meanings.

Although short in length, Phan Thi Vang Anh’s stories have a very solid structure and high compression. Some stories encapsulate a long stretch of a person’s life in them. Not every author can do this. And the author, with her sensitivity and subtlety, makes the stories sparkle.