The Termite Queen

T? DUY ANH, Charles Waugh (Translated by), Quan Manh Ha (Translated by)

$15.99

Publication Date: December 5th, 2023

Publisher:

Penguin Books

ISBN:

9789815127157

Pages:

256

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Description

The Termite Queen delves into the seamy underground of corrupt development practices and environmental degradation in Vietnam. Burrowing deep inside the tension-filled relationship between contemporary Vietnam's hyper-capitalist society and its communist government, Ta Duy Anh’s The Termite Queen tells the Kafkaesque story of a young man who must expose the corruption of a vast network of murky figures profiting from their connections to power. Banned in Vietnam, this allegorical story is told by Viet, a native-born Vietnamese who takes over his deceased father’s powerful land development corporation. The funeral hasn’t even concluded before Viet suspects foul play, as one clue after another leads him to question everything he thought he knew about his father, their family business, and its incredible ability to get approval for projects with dubious societal and environmental returns. With The Termite Queen, Ta Duy Anh cements his reputation as one of contemporary Vietnam's greatest fabulists, having filled this tale with criticisms that can only come from a deep and abiding love for his country.

About the Author

Ta Duy Anh (1959– ) is a prolific writer from Hanoi who has published in multiple genres and won numerous awards for his literary writing in Vietnam. His novel Lao Kho (Mr. Misery) has been translated into French and published in France under the title Sur le dos du buffle while some of his short stories have been translated into English, French, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, and Thai.

Quan Manh Ha is professor of American Literature & Ethnic Studies at the University of Montana. His research interests include multiethnic US literatures, Vietnam War literature, critical race theory, and literary translation. He is the translator of Other Moons: Vietnamese Stories of the American War and Its Aftermath, Luminous Nights: Pioneering Vietnamese Short Stories, and Hanoi at Midnight: Stories by Bao Ninh.

Charles Waugh is the co-editor and co-translator of two collections of short fiction by Vietnamese writers: Wild Mustard: New Voices from Vietnam, and Family of Fallen Leaves: Stories of Agent Orange from Vietnamese Writers. He is the associate editor for fiction at ISLE, the journal of the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment, and professor of English at Utah State University, USA.

Praise for The Termite Queen

"The novel offers a chilling look at the most divisive issue in contemporary Vietnam—the great on-going land grab that has displaced millions of poor Vietnamese. This culturally important work should not be overlooked." —Andrew X. Pham, author of Catfish and Mandala and The Eaves of Heaven

"Daring, disturbing, moving, and unforgettable, The Termite Queen establishes Ta Duy Anh as one of Vietnam’s greatest novelists, one whose work deserves to be read, studied and discussed for many years to come.’ —Dr. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, author of The Mountains Sing and Dust Child