diaCRITICS

30/07/2026

Issue 02 of diaCRITICS is here!

diaCRITICS 02 explores the theme of alienation—the profound sense of isolation, estrangement, or disconnection from society.

Alienation is a common trait of the immigrant and refugee experience and perhaps more so for immigrants and refugees of color living in the West, given the history of colonialism, imperialism, and racism.

But with the rise of anti-immigrant conservativism–one marked by mass deportation, mass surveillance, government abductions, and deaths–this feeling of alienation has changed shape and intensity.

What does this moment mean for Vietnamese and Southeast Asian diasporic communities? How does this moment look from the perspective of Vietnamese and Southeast Asian diasporic lens?

Writers and artists address this topic in the latest special issue of diaCRITICS.

diaCRITICS 02 features:

Art by Antonius-Tín Bui. Essays by Thi Bui and Thị Minh Huyền Nguyễn. Poetry by Alina Nguyễn. Conversations with Kevin Nguyen, Christina Hughes, and Ly Thuy Nguyen. Fiction by Kyla-Yến Huỳnh Giffin, Kathy Nguyen, and Thảo Tô.

Read it now: https://diacritics.org/issue/diacritics-02/

30/07/2026

“The Young Die Old” is a feat in experimental storytelling.

On the back of a buffalo-drawn wagon, guided by a silent driver, travel three strangers, one of whom is the unnamed protagonist known as the Man. The wagon bumps its way through the mountainous forest as a train chugs along in the distance, releasing white smoke into the air. The Man remembers havin...

23/07/2026

In "Hà Tri Lão Nhân," Huy Diệp reflects on his relationship with his grandfather.

Every night after dinner, my grandfather and I played Chinese Chess on the floor, laughing loudly. His wooden chess set was an uneven assembly of chipped and cracked round pieces with carved Chinese characters. Missing or damaged pieces were replaced by substitutes found elsewhere, some with slightl...

22/07/2026

Experimenting with Vietlish is the project of “Timber & Lụa.”

Speaking in Vietlish can be fun, especially when my Viet-American friends and I drop a Vietnamese word into our English conversations to better capture or describe something that there’s no perfect English word for. When Vietnamese is associated with the language of growing up and how elders raise...

14/07/2026

Sydney Van To speaks with “Anam” author André Dao.

This interview was adapted from an event during André Dao’s visit to the University of California—Berkeley on October 23, 2025. André Dao is the author of Anam. ~ Sydney Van To: How did you come to write this book? André Dao: The story of Anam began for me as a very simple, even naïve, proje...

08/07/2026

“Bibliotactics” details the fascinating history of colonial libraries in Vietnam.

In her recently published book Bibliotactics: Libraries and the Colonial Public in Vietnam, Cindy Anh Nguyen details the fascinating history of colonial libraries in Vietnam. The central claim of her book is that libraries were in no way “neutral” spaces. Indeed, from the very moment of its foun...

01/07/2026

Read a new poem by Hana Anandira.

Cut my heart open and in that wound you will see the face of my grandmothers; their kitchens; the smell of their perfumes; the languages they spoke; the languages they learned; their handwriting; the letters my paternal grandmother wrote me; the letters I wrote her; the school she taught in; the bum...

25/06/2026

“It was during my PhD in 2016 that I decided to take my interest in German and combine that with my personal background of being Asian American. I thought, there must be something there. Obviously there are Asian people in Germany, but I didn’t know much at the time. So I made it an intentional decision to combine these two parts of my experiences.”

Zach Ramon Fitzpatrick also known as Asian German Updates is Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he teaches courses like “Asian America / Asian Germany: History, Identity, Media” and “Exploring Asian German Studies.” Zach recently released the co-edited volume...

17/06/2026

Thúy Đinh on Hồ Xuân Hương.

In the sixth grade, I read an anecdote about the child Hồ Xuân Hương that illustrates her innate talent for improvisation. One rainy day, while crossing the schoolyard, Hồ Xuân Hương accidentally slipped on a muddy spot and fell flat on her face. Seeing this, the other students loudly made...

10/06/2026

Children’s books introduced Vietnamese refugees to US readers, often simplifying their histories and experiences.

Children’s books introduced Vietnamese refugees to US readers, often simplifying their histories and experiences.