'Letter to You': A love story during wartime and the promise 'When we return from Dien Bien Phu, we will get married'

Author Hoang Nam Tien signs books for readers at Nha Nam Book Fair ( Hanoi ) on April 9. (Photo: PV/Vietnam+)

“My father is Major General Hoang Dan, my mother is National Assembly Representative Nguyen Thi An Vinh. They became husband and wife on an autumn day in 1954, after my father cycled more than a thousand kilometers to find the person he loved to marry.”

That is how author Hoang Nam Tien begins his parents' wartime love story in the book "Letter for You."

The story is told through more than 400 hasty handwritten letters over the course of more than 40 years by Major General Hoang Dan and Mrs. An Vinh. The story is filled with all the emotions of two people in a long-distance relationship: longing, anger, but above all, understanding and strength, about how to have intelligent and rational dialogue while still being extremely emotional to reassure each other, raise children together and keep the fire of marriage burning.

“Letter to You” is not only a romantic memory of two people, but also represents the love of many couples during the war years of the country, who, despite loving each other, still put the Fatherland above all else. (Photo: PV/Vietnam+)

Readers not only feel the love between couples, patriotism and noble ideals, but also relive important moments in the nation's history, thereby realizing their own role in the present, learning the spirit of constantly striving every day to devote themselves.

Author Hoang Nam Tien wrote: “Thinking about my parents, I can’t help but feel sad. History is fierce and brutal, the battles made us sacrifice too much in terms of human and material resources. But there are sacrifices and losses that happen more quietly but are no less painful, such as youth, happy families, and the opportunity to live together during the most beautiful times.”

The narrative of “Letter to You” follows the history of national defense, from “After Dien Bien Phu, we got married” to “The scent of nostalgia,” then “Letter to You, between the enemy’s guns we still fire” and ends with “Come back here and be together.”

Author Hoang Nam Tien carefully preserves letters and memorabilia of his parents. (Photo: PV/Vietnam+)

According to Editor Nguyen Hoang Dieu Thuy, Nha Nam Culture and Communication Company, the author does not tell about battles, but about the journey of love, letters flying among bombs and bullets, dates on the battlefield, how Major General Hoang Dan and Mrs. An Vinh arrange their lives and love each other...

For example, Mr. Hoang Dan's unique wedding journey. After the engagement, he left, and only after the Dien Bien Phu Victory did he have time to return home to marry his wife. But during the war, news was not available, and his fiancée also moved from place to place. So he had to cycle from Dien Bien to Nghe An, from Nghe An to Thai Nguyen, from Thai Nguyen to Lang Son before finding a wife to marry. The total distance was about 1,300 kilometers. In the wartime conditions and difficult roads of 1954, that distance could make today's "backpackers" admire.

Or like in a letter sent to Moscow, Mrs. An Vinh wrote, "We (...) still write letters to each other regularly and still love each other very much, don't we?"

In the middle of the letters of longing for each other, readers encounter extremely realistic details of everyday life: “Here there are two types of laundry soap, one costs 2 cents and the other costs 3 cents. They are the same for washing, but one is more expensive because it has a few extra ingredients added to it to make the smell more pleasant. I only use the 2 cents one, which saves 1 cent a month,” Mr. Hoang Dan wrote to his wife.

On the occasion of the launch of the book “Letter for You” - the love story of General Hoang Dan and his wife told by their son, Nha Nam Company organized a book introduction at 2:30 p.m. on April 13 at the Vietnam Women's Museum, 36 Ly Thuong Kiet, Hanoi.

The program has the participation of author Hoang Nam Tien, Editor Nguyen Hoang Dieu Thuy and Lieutenant General Nguyen Manh Dau./.

Major General Hoang Dan (1928-2003) was one of the talented generals of the Vietnam People's Army; a commanding officer who fought through many battlefields, from the resistance war against France to the war against the US. He was born in Nghe An, in a family of famous generals, a descendant of the famous general of the Tran Dynasty - Hoang Ta Thon (Sat Hai Dai Vuong).

Author Hoang Nam Tien is currently Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, FPT University. He is a technology expert, advisor in startup activities, famous teacher and speaker.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/thu-cho-em-chuyen-tinh-thoi-chien-va-loi-hen-di-dien-bien-phu-ve-ta-cuoi-post939469.vnp