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Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

Born and raised in Việt Nam, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is the author of the international bestseller THE MOUNTAINS SING, runner-up for the 2021 Dayton Literary Peace Prize, winner of the 2020 BookBrowse Best Debut Award, the 2021 International Book Awards, the 2021 PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, and the 2020 Lannan Literary Award Fellowship for Fiction. She has published twelve books of poetry, fiction and non-fiction in Vietnamese and English and has received some of the top literary prizes in Việt Nam including the Poetry of the Year 2010 from the Hà Nội Writers Association. Her writing has been translated into twenty languages and has appeared in major publications including the New York Times. She has a PhD in Creative Writing from Lancaster University.

Quế Mai is a tireless advocate for the rights of disadvantaged groups in Việt Nam and has founded several scholarship programs. She was named by Forbes Vietnam as one of 20 inspiring women of 2021. For more information, visit: http://www.nguyenphanquemai.com

Genres: Literary Fiction

Novels

The Mountains Sing (2020)
Dust Child (2023)

Collections

The Secret of Hoa Sen (poems) (2014)

Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai recommends

The Lotus Shoes (2025)
Jane Yang
"Gripping from the very first page until the very last, The Lotus Shoes is a spellbinding, educational and heartbreaking tale of survival and courage. More than a book, this novel is an act of liberation and empowerment for women everywhere."

They Dream in Gold (2024)
Mai Sennaar
"Exquisitely written, They Dream in Gold is an epic and hauntingly beautiful story, each page shimmering like gold, woven by Mai Sennaar's astounding talent as a debut author whose work I look forward to reading during the years to come."

The Road to the Salt Sea (2024)
Samuel Kọláwọlé
"Heart-breaking and educational, The Road to the Salt Sea is an unforgettable and moving tale of what it takes to survive with dignity and to make this tumultuous, unfair world our home."

No Country for Love (2024)
Yaroslav Trofimov
"A chilling account of what it means to live under a totalitarian regime. With the sharp pen of an award-winning journalist and the tender heart of a poet, Yaroslav Trofimov has woven an exquisite and enduring tale of survival, courage, and resistance. Epic yet intimate, heart-breaking yet hopeful, terrifying yet inspiring, No Country for Love is a love letter to Ukraine and a gift to anyone who appreciates peace ."

Allow Me to Introduce Myself (2024)
Onyi Nwabineli
"An unputdownable read! Skilfully and delicately written, Allow Me to Introduce Myself helps us behave more ethically in this age of social media obsessions. Onyi Nwabineli is an immensely talented writer whose pen is sharp and unflinching."

Pelican Girls (2024)
Julia Malye
"Stunning, moving, and remarkable. Pelican Girls is more than a novel, it's an act of advocacy for human rights and for historical acknowledgment. Julia Malye has found a rich and compelling voice, unique to those who are experts in navigating between languages and cultures."

Twilight Territory (2024)
Andrew X Pham
"Deeply empathetic, heart-wrenching, and moving, Twilight Territory highlights the devastating impact of colonization on both the colonizers and the colonized. With his iconic poetic prose, Andrew X. Pham gifts us an epic love story that conquers wars, horror, and human greed to offer us hope and light."

The Storm We Made (2024)
Vanessa Chan
"Exceptionally brave. Heart-breaking, beautiful, and moving. Destined to be a classic. The Storm We Made is a celebration of stories that have been silenced or erased. Vanessa Chan writes with admirable power, confidence and grace. By confronting the horror of colonization and war, this book opens the pathway to peace and healing. A significant contribution to world's literature."

What We Kept to Ourselves (2023)
Nancy Jooyoun Kim
"Layers after layers of mystery are revealed with each chapter of this exquisitely written novel. What We Kept to Ourselves is a compelling, poetic, important, thought-provoking, and unforgettable read. Nancy Jooyoun Kim is a master storyteller who has the power to keep us spellbound and reminds us what we must do to make this world a better place."

Straw Dogs of the Universe (2023)
Ye Chun
"Hauntingly beautiful and exquisitely written, Straw Dogs of the Universe shines much-needed light on a historical period that we must not forget if we want to do better as a human race. This book is a treasure, to be read and re-read, as the best poems should be."

The Paris Daughter (2023)
Kristin Harmel
"Brilliantly crafted and heart-shatteringly beautiful, THE PARIS DAUGHTER is one of the best historical novels I have ever read....This is a timeless book of survival, strength, courage, a forever lasting song calling for peace."

The Moon Represents My Heart (2023)
Pim Wangtechawat
"Masterfully plotted, poetic, and captivating, The Moon Represents My Heart establishes Pim Wangtechawat as a rising star from South-East Asia's rich literary heritage."

Banyan Moon (2023)
Thao Thai
"Heart-shatteringly beautiful. Banyan Moon is a love letter to keepers of secrets, to motherhood, family and survival. Thao Thai is a major talent whose exciting, impressive, and poetic prose will grow into you, like a strong and lush banyan tree deeply rooted in the rich Vietnamese literary heritage."

Hula (2023)
Jasmin 'Iolani Hakes
"Majestic, powerful, mysterious, and captivating as Hawaiian mountains, Hula is a magnificent achievement, a courageous act of resistance against colonization, an epic love song for native Hawaiian people. I cannot wait for readers everywhere to celebrate Jasmin Iolani Hakes' talent."

Before All the World (2022)
Moriel Rothman-Zecher
"Before All the World is a song about survival and a refusal to be erased. Daringly crafted and poetically told, this novel is a celebration of Moriel Rothman-Zecher's extraordinary talent, compassion, and love for humanity. To read Before All the World is to abandon all of our expectations and privileges so that the torch of curiosity and the beauty of words can lead us to unexpected places, where we can see ourselves in those whom we might have considered the Other."

Peach Blossom Spring (2022)
Melissa Fu
"Magical, and powerful, Peach Blossom Spring brings to life the costs of wars and conflicts while illuminating the spirit of human survival. Inspired by her father's real-life experiences and her determination to comprehend her family's past, Melissa Fu has gifted us with a timely, moving, and universal novel."

A Play for the End of the World (2021)
Jai Chakrabarti
"An exceptional work of fiction. Expertly plotted and masterfully crafted, A Play for the End of the World is an unforgettable song that honors millions of lives lost due to genocide and political oppression. Already an award-winning short story writer, Jai Chakrabarti pens with the economic intensity and the power of observation that resurrects the past and shines the light of understanding onto the present and future. I could not put this book down!"

Em (2021)
Kim Thúy
"Just like tender, strong and graceful Vietnamese silk threads, Kim Thúy masterfully weaves us through Vietnam's 20th-century history while binding us to the lives of its people so that their experiences expand our worldview. EM is an original, innovative, poetic and haunting novel that deserves to be read, shared, studied and discussed."

Dear Miss Metropolitan (2021)
Carolyn Ferrell
"A daring and powerful first novel. Carolyn Ferrell is masterful in delivering us into the depth of her characters’ dark worlds so that we emerge with the light of understanding and the inspiration to take actions. I am changed after reading this book."

Things We Lost to the Water (2021)
Eric Nguyen
"A devastatingly beautiful debut novel of secrets, deceits, and survivals. An extraordinary tale of a mother and her two sons, torn apart by the storms of Vietnam, to be tested again by the hurricanes of New Orleans. The end has me weeping from joy, sorrow and hope. Eric Nguyen’s talent radiates via his urgent prose and his ability to sketch the fine line between loyalty and betrayal, between what brings us together and what breaks us apart. Things We Lost to the Water is a powerful, stunning, and necessary read!"

The Mermaid from Jeju (2020)
Sumi Hahn
"From the horror and devastation of World War II rises the heartwarming and magical tale of The Mermaid from Jeju. Goh Junja is an unforgettable haenyeo whose life radiates the truth of dreams. Sumi Hahn is a dream weaver whose poetic and powerful prose makes us believe in magic and reconfirms the transformative power of storytelling."

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