Pulitzer Prize winner coming to Coeur d'Alene

Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen will deliver the Idaho Humanities Council’s 16th annual North Idaho Distinguished Humanities Lecture on Friday, Oct. 25, at The Coeur d’Alene Resort.

Nguyen and his family came to the United States as refugees during the Vietnam War in 1975. Noticing the focus on Americans in movies and books about the war, he was inspired to write about the war from a Vietnamese perspective.

His debut novel, “The Sympathizer,” won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, among other accolades. The New York Times said his debut “filled a void, giving voice to the previously voiceless while it compels the rest of us to look at the events of forty years ago in a new light.”

In addition to teaching at the University of Southern California, Nguyen works as a cultural critic-at-large for The Los Angeles Times. His newest work, a collection of short stories called “The Refugees,” explores questions of immigration, identity, love and family.

General tickets to Nguyen’s talk are $65; benefactor tickets are $130. Benefactors are invited to a private reception with Nguyen at 5 p.m. Oct. 25.

The evening begins with a reception and silent auction at 6 p.m. at The Coeur d’Alene Resort. Dinner is served at 7, with Nguyen’s speech to follow. Nguyen’s books will be available for signing after the event.

Tickets can be purchased through the Idaho Humanities Council website or by phone at 208-345-5346.

Info: www.idahohumanities.org