Photos of People Reading

Dust Child

by Nguyen Phan Que Mai

  • Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
  • 2023
  • ISBN: 978-1643752754
  • 339 pages
  • WorldCat
Dust child book cover
About the Book

Past and present converge as sisters, Trang and Quỳnh, come together to confront decisions made during a time of war—decisions that reverberate throughout one another’s lives and ultimately allow them to find common ground across race, generation, culture, and language. Immersive, moving, and lyrical, Dust Child tells an unforgettable story of how those who inherited tragedy can redefine their destinies with hard-won wisdom, compassion, courage, and joy. ebook icon
nguyen phan que mai author picture
About the Author

Dr. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is the author of thirteen books in Vietnamese and English. Her poetry in Vietnamese has been written into popular songs and has received top literary awards in Vietnam including the Poetry of the Year 2010 Award from the Hanoi Writers Association. Her writing in English include two global bestselling novels The Mountains Sing and Dust Child. She has been translated into more than twenty-five languages and has received the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, the International Book Award, the BookBrowse Best Debut Award, the Lannan Literary Fellowship in Fiction as well as Runner-up for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize.

Host a Book Discussion

  • Dust Child Social Media Graphic

    Do you want to share this book with your reading group? The Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) has made it easy to promote and discuss.

    • Discussion Guide PDF
    • Social Media JPG
    • Poster PDF [8.5 x 11]
    • Bookmark PDF
last updated: 03/25/26 10:05