Author Description

"In Viet Nam, ca dao are folk poems - short lyrics passed down by word of mouth and sung without any instrumental accompaniment." "Near the end of the American war in Viet Nam, poet and translator John Balaban returned to Viet Nam to record ca dao. It is remarkable to imagine a young American traveling the countryside alone during wartime, walking up to farmers and fishermen, seamstresses and monks, and asking "Would you sing your favorite poems?"" "Ca Dao Viet Nam represents the first time that ca dao have been translated and collected into any Western language. For this revised, expanded bilingual edition, Balaban provides an insightful introduction about the importance of poetry to Vietnamese culture."--Jacket.