Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora

Cultural Writing. Asian American Studies. In his long-overdue first collection of essays, noted journalist and NPR commentator Andrew Lam explores his life-long struggle for identity as a Viet Kieu, or a Vietnamese national living abroad. At age eleven, Lam, the son of a South Vietnamese general, came to California on the eve of the fall of Saigon to communist forces. He traded his Vietnamese name for a more American one and immersed himself in the allure of the American Dream: something not clearly defined for him or his family. Reflecting on the meanings of the Vietnam War to the Vietnamese people themselves--particularly to those in exile--Lam picks with searing honesty at the roots of his doubleness and his parents' longing for a homeland that no longer exists.

A brilliant first collection of the work of frequent NPR contributor, journalist, and Pacific News Service Editor Andrew Lam. He uses his work over the last two decades to explore his life as an American and to return to his Vietnamese heritage. His truggle and that of a million other Vietnamese expatriates is much the same as many others who belong to two countries. His insights point out the unique situation of today and what it is like to go home.