Dear Da-Lê shortlisted for the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize!
Dear Da-Lê: A Father’s Memoir of the Vietnam War and the Iranian Revolution by Calgary author Anh Duong, has been shortlisted for the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize! The Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize, which comes with a $20,000 CAD cash award, was created to bring literary recognition to Canadian talent and kick-start the careers of debut authors. Selected by Kobo’s team of expert booksellers, Dear Da-Lê is one of six debut books shortlisted in the nonfiction category. The winner will be announced on June 17, 2025.
In this powerful memoir written for his Canadian daughter, retired Calgary engineer Anh Duong breaks a lifetime of silence about the traumas he endured as a child during the Vietnam War and later as a refugee in revolutionary Iran. Dear Da-Lê began as a series of letters from a concerned father after his daughter became involved in student protests, prompting him to confront his own experiences of upheaval. Told in precise prose, the memoir traces Duong’s journey from his birth in 1953 to his arrival in Canada in 1980, revealing a coming-of-age story shaped by war, exile, and the quiet strength of survival. With moments of unexpected tenderness, this moving account speaks to the legacy of trauma and the healing power of truth.
April 30, 2025 is the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, a day that has profound significance for the Vietnamese diaspora in North America. "Although it's been decades since my experiences in Vietnam, I have never forgotten the impact of war on me and my community," says Anh Duong. "I arrived at what is now the Toronto Pearson International Airport in 1980 with $80 in my pocket, not knowing if I would ever see my family in Vietnam again. Like many refugee parents, I struggled to explain the experiences of war and refugees to my children. My memories of that time and the trauma I endured led me to a very creative experience—that of writing a book inspired by letters to my daughter. These unspoken stories continue to shape diaspora families like mine across generations."