Jolie Hoang grew up as one of ten children \, part of a loving\, prosperous Vietnamese family. All that changed when the communists took over in 1975\; the family lived in constant fear of be ing sent to the dreaded "new economic zone." Desperate to ensure the famil y&rsquo\;s safety and to provide a future for his children\, Jolie&rsquo\; s father arranged three separate escapes. The first was a failure that cos t most of their fortune\, but the second was successful&mdash\;six of his children reached Indonesia and ultimately settled in Canada. He and his yo ungest daughter drowned during the disastrous third attempt.
\nAlter nately told from the author&rsquo\;s perspective and that of her father&rs quo\;s ghost\, \;Three Funerals for My Father \;is a poig nant story of love\, grief and resilience that spans three countries and f ifty years. It is an intimate story of one family\, a testament to the col lective experience of the "boat people" who escaped communist Vietnam\, an d a plea on behalf of the millions of refugees currently seeking asylum ac ross the globe.
\nShortlisted for 29th Annual Hamilton Literary Awar ds
\nAs a teenager\, \;Jolie Phuong H oang \;escaped from Vietnam with her siblings. Arriving in Canada in 1 984\, she enrolled in high school and then trained in mathematics\, all th e while retaining her love of writing. Her work has been recognized by the North Street Book Prize (Winner\, Literary Fiction\, 2020)\, the San Fran cisco Book Festival (Honourable Mention\, 2020) and the Surrey Internation al Writers Festival (Finalist\, 2020). A college professor of mathematics\ , Jolie lives with her daughters in Fonthill\, Ontario. \;
\nBor row T hree Funerals for My Father from our collection
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