The posthumous work "What remains of the hero" by the literary revolutionary Nguyen Huy Thiep

In November, Nha Nam released the posthumous collection What's Left of the Hero by writer Nguyen Huy Thiep.

This is the result of searching, selecting and introducing unpublished poems by writer Nguyen Huy Thiep. Some short stories have been published but for some reason have been forgotten, film scripts, essays, sketches on ceramics, and valuable documentary photos following each milestone in the writer's life.

Nha Nam's editorial team temporarily calls this book a "posthumous work", aiming to provide readers with a complete, comprehensive picture of Nguyen Huy Thiep's literary career and life journey from the 1970s until his passing in 2021.

Writer Nguyen Huy Thiep in 2018 (Photo: Nha Nam).

About the posthumous collection "What remains of the hero"

According to Nha Nam, the name of this posthumous collection was taken from a poem in the story "Flow Away, River" by the writer himself: "... Then the river will wash away/ What remains of the hero", divided into 3 parts:

Part 1: Unpublished poems by the author; short stories; essays, miscellaneous writings; film scripts.

Part 2 : Sketches on ceramics, including: Portrait sketches of relatives, friends, artists and self-portraits; Sketches of authors, literary works and events.

Part 3 : Photo documents about writer Nguyen Huy Thiep, including some photos taken during his life, photos of manuscripts and newspaper articles kept by family and friends.

Cover of the posthumous collection "What remains of a hero" (Photo: Nha Nam).

About the works (poetry, short stories, essays, essays, film scripts)

Nguyen Huy Thiep began writing poetry early and the first collection of poems in this book, Sour Verses of Poetry, was completed by the writer at the age of 27. Although the collection of poems is like a diary entry, satisfying the emotions and thoughts of a provincial teacher, readers still find his voice and perspective quite unique.

The second collection of poems was selected from the verses he wrote after falling seriously ill to express his feelings, moods and keep his mind clear.

Among the three short stories selected for inclusion in the book, Co My and Vet Troi were two works composed at the same time as Tuong Vei Hoi and Nhung Bai Songs.

The book also introduces two film scripts written by him: Retired General (completed and used by director Nguyen Khac Loi to make a film of the same name in 1988) and No More King, completed in 2002 .

Nguyen Huy Thiep's essays and essays, mostly published for the first time, will help readers understand more about the writer's thoughts and concerns about life and literature.

In the essay Literature and Life , the author raises the question, does literature have power?

According to him, "literature is life", and life "should only be studied and researched, not explained". Literary talent must lie in "accurately expressing life" on the condition that "the language is expressed accurately".

Photo of typed manuscripts of works "Literature and Life"; "Retired General"; "Life is so fun"... (Photo: Nha Nam).

About the sketches on ceramics

When the public awarded him the title of writer, Nguyen Huy Thiep fully understood that it was "both useful and frivolous". While the literary world was still dreaming and demanding top-notch works, people saw Nguyen Huy Thiep writing movie scripts and "cheap" novels.

When the public thought he had run out of writing energy, he still sat down to sketch ceramics every day.

When he was young, Nguyen Huy Thiep loved drawing and studied drawing and newspaper illustration, but he drew most often and sketched on ceramics.

In the ceramic sketches in the second part of this book, readers will see many images of family, writers, close friends and great literary personalities that the writer loved such as: Pushkin, Bui Giang, Trinh Cong Son, To Hoai, Le Luu...

He also redraws the covers and characters of his works on special occasions. He draws carefully and meticulously and has drawn hundreds of such ceramic sketches.

Photo of ceramic sketches by writer Nguyen Huy Thiep (Photo: Nha Nam).

About the photo materials

Part three of the book includes photographs of the writer at important milestones in his life, literary events he attended and meetings.

Readers will see images of Nguyen Huy Thiep from when he was teaching in Son La , opening Hoa Ban restaurant, receiving awards in Italy, at the French Embassy in Vietnam,...

Photos of him with his family, writers, and literary friends such as Nguyen Khai, Nguyen Duy, Nguyen Quang Sang, musicians Van Cao, Pham Duy, etc. also appear in the work.

The last pages of the book contain photographs of some handwritten and typed manuscripts of the writer's works, some autographs, letters and photographs of handwritten/drawn versions of some poems that have been included in this posthumous collection.

Photo of writer Nguyen Huy Thiep at important milestones in his life (Photo: Nha Nam).

Nguyen Huy Thiep (1950 - 2021) is the most prominent writer of modern Vietnamese literature.

He wrote in a variety of genres, from poetry, novels, literary essays to plays, film scripts... but left a lasting influence and mark on the literary world, especially in the short story genre with Retired General , Salt of the Forest , No King , Water God's Daughter ...

His short stories have been reprinted many times, translated and published in many countries around the world , helping the writer receive noble awards such as: French Medal of Arts and Literature (2007), Premio Nonino Award, Italy (2008), State Prize for Literature and Arts (2022).

Before becoming a writer, he spent 10 years as a teacher in the northern mountainous region.

Choosing the literary path was like an unusual turn, a push of fate, which made Nguyen Huy Thiep become a great writer of 20th century Vietnam, a writer with international reputation, but also had to go through many ups and downs.

Nha Nam organized a discussion on the Launch of the posthumous collection of writer Nguyen Huy Thiep - What remains of the hero , to learn, share and discuss a literary life full of impressions.

Time: 6pm-8pm, November 22.

Address: Event Space, 3rd floor, Complex 01 Tay Son, No. 29, Alley 31, Lane 167 Tay Son, Hanoi .

With the participation of guests:

- Literary critic Pham Xuan Nguyen - Program coordinator.

- Artist Le Thiet Cuong - A close friend of writer Nguyen Huy Thiep, and also the artist who drew the cover for the book.

- Doctor of Literature Mai Anh Tuan - Compiler of the book.

Source link: https://dantri.com.vn/van-hoa/di-cao-anh-hung-con-chi-cua-nguoi-nao-dong-van-chuong-nguyen-huy-thiep-20231120164952964.htm