Why the Sea Is Full of Salt and Other Vietnamese Folktales

This delightful anthology presents eighteen well-known and much-loved Vietnamese folktales. Originally collected and retold by the prize-winning author Minh Tran Huy, they are here elegantly translated by Harry Aveling. The stories tell of charming princesses, disputing brothers, powerful kings, magical animals, peculiar objects, and kindhearted genies. Their mysterious worlds stir the imagination and evoke the soul of Vietnam—its intense human relationships, its exuberance and gentle melancholy. The book will appeal to readers of all ages and cultures.

Minh Tran Huy is a French writer of Vietnamese descent and the author of three widely acclaimed novels. She has also worked as an editor, journalist, and literary critic. Harry Aveling has translated extensively from various Southeast Asian literatures. He taught in the English faculty of the University of Social Sciences and the Humanities, Ho Chi Minh City, between 2003 and 2015.