Writer Van Thanh Le: The words are like purple litmus paper that reveals the writer's true form.

Famous for his writing, writer Van Thanh Le (pictured) also left his mark in the field of criticism with three books of portrait criticism: Following the Shadow, Like a Bird in the Eye of the Horizon and Noriko Matsui - Love Turns a Strange Land into a Homeland. Recently, he once again surprised everyone when he released a book of criticism of children's literature, Vietnamese Children's Literature in the Early 21st Century - Things Remaining in Closed Eyes (Kim Dong Publishing House).

* REPORTER: Returning to the field of criticism after a long absence, is your mindset any different, or is it still "Walking alone through the late night garden"?

* Writer VAN THANH LE: Vietnamese children's literature in the early 21st century - Things left in closed eyes is a type of essay, so I did not write leisurely but focused and put in more effort. Writing is always a personal journey, but with this essay, I feel lucky, not groping alone. The book would have been difficult to take shape without the support of documents and comments from some literary friends, colleagues and seniors. No matter what I write, for me, critical works are always in accordance with my own reading and perception of the movement of contemporary literature.

* With the practice of criticizing children's literature, do you want to further explore yourself, or do you feel the need to speak up for yourself and your colleagues who are writing for children?

* In 2023, I read a master's thesis dissecting my works of children's literature, and was startled by the fact that the reference sources were not very abundant. I knew that the research on children's literature criticism was still quite quiet in the general flow of literary criticism research, but seeing that emptiness with my own eyes made me worried. Not to mention, during the reading process, I felt that there were comments and assessments that did not follow the movement of contemporary children's literature. There was something wrong, unsatisfactory, not quite right with children's literature. As someone who both wrote and participated in making children's books, and above all, loves children, I hope to have a somewhat comprehensive and systematic view of the movement of children's literature in recent years. The book started very naturally like that.

* While composing and writing criticism, how do you avoid being accused of "both playing football and blowing the whistle", keeping your writing objective but not "offending" your colleagues?

* The words are like litmus paper that reveals the writer's true form. If in writing, the writer can somewhat hide under the surface of the words, then with criticism, it seems that the writer is revealed more clearly and specifically, even the most objective is still his subjective perspective. I write with the mindset of a reader, a professional, a book maker, honest with my feelings and understanding. With Vietnamese Children's Literature in the early 21st century - Things left in closed eyes, I think there will be people who are unhappy, who do not like my straightforwardness and honesty. But what can I do, when I am not used to "fake" and avoid, not used to "dodging and weaving" in front of words.

* Some people say that Vietnamese children's literature has always been too gentle and serious. And if it continues like this, it will be difficult to catch up with world children's literature. What do you think about this?

* In the book, I mentioned that it took two centuries for world children's literature to push entertainment forward, through the explosion of detective stories, adventures, science fiction, humor, and deviant characters. Looking back, a century of Vietnamese children's literature was created and developed, with many marks and achievements. Most recently, the 8X, 9X generation and later are writing differently, newer, closer to the breath and spirit of children. As for writers, no one can hold their hands and teach them, especially young people, because through the experience of reading and writing, each person will know how to break out and rise up.

* In Part 2 - As I See, and I Feel…, you spent time to feel/dissect the works of your colleagues. However, in 25 years, there have only been 12 works that have been “named and shamed”, is that too few? What are your criteria for selecting works?

* With 12 works, some people will say it is too little, but some more demanding people will say it is too much. At the present time, I am satisfied, and think it is a beautiful number. Beautiful because these works convince me, show me clearly the transformation of children's literature in the past 25 years. As for the works that convince me, please read the book. Of course, if I need a top 20 or 25, I can also add more. But literature is not a feast or a cooperative division that requires enough portions, enough people, enough tables.

* Your book has just touched on the first 25 years of Vietnamese children's literature in the 21st century. Given the current excitement of literary life, what do you think about the situation of children's literature in the coming years?

* We had about 15 years (1980-1995) when children's literature saw the emergence of many impressive authors and works, which, along with some previous works, entered literary history. Recently, from 2015 until now, I imagine that the cycle of impressive authors and works will return with authors born in the 80s, 90s and those born after 2000. Of course, good works always need time to be screened and answered. Not to mention that nowadays, the screening is more rigorous. But I still have faith that some works will stand the test of time, from the source of words of today's young writing generation.

* Will there be more books of children's literature criticism under the name Van Thanh Le?

* After Vietnamese Children's Literature in the early 21st century - Things left in closed eyes, I organized the manuscript Vietnamese Children's Literature - On the path they set foot, a collection of articles, thoughts, and concerns about children's literature by a number of writers, poets, and research articles, comments, and evaluations of children's literature by a number of literary critics, published by Kim Dong Publishing House. Hopefully, these two books will contribute to inspiring writers, poets, and critical researchers to continue to pay attention to children's literature so that the works and research works on children's literature can be extended. Hopefully, I can also stay somewhere in this long-lasting stream.

Performed by HO SON

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/nha-van-van-thanh-le-chu-nhu-quy-tim-lam-hien-nguyen-hinh-nguoi-viet-post806651.html