Lao Canadian Writer Receives Award

I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that Souvankham Thammavongsa's book, Small Arguments was recently tapped by the Canadian Author's Association for the CAA-BookTelevision Emerging Writer Award this year.

Judges comments included:
"Thammavongsa's poems are like prisms splitting thoughts, words and visions. And yet her work has a clarity that makes reading her poetry an easy pleasure"

"Her work, as demonstrated by her book of poetry Small Arguments, is definitely worthy of an Award. Indeed I look to seeing her on the list of G.G. winners in the not-too-distant future. Her poems, like prisms, split thoughts, words and visions until the reader is mesmerized by their beauty. And yet her work has a simplicity and clarity that make reading her poetry an easy pleasure. She is a joy to read.

"I was able to see by reading the book that Souvankham Thammavongsa could carry the excellence of her work to an entire volume without one single discordant or less well written poem."

A few years back I'd done an interview with her for Asian American Press, which is currently being archived along with a number of other interviews with Asian American women authors over at: http://voices.cla.umn.edu/vg/interviews/aap .