The Three Daughters of Annam
- Author Phong Nguyen
- Publisher Hachette Audio
- Publish Date 8 December 2026
- Run Time 12 hours
- Format Audio
- Genre Fiction: general and literary, Generational sagas, Historical fiction.
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What to expect
Spanning three generations, three continents and almost ninety years this novel set in Việt Nam reckons with history and the impact of three extraordinary women.
In 1935 in the city of Nam Dinh in northern Việt Nam, Nhung, Mai, and Anh are inseparable and deeply loyal to each other. Growing up in vastly different worlds, yet united by their dreams, these three women navigate the treacherous French occupation, where even uttering "Việt Nam" becomes an act of rebellion.
Their lives soon diverge, sending each of their family lines down drastically different paths from Việt Nam to Paris to the United States. But their goals are the same: survive, thrive, and triumph over the adversities they and their homeland have endured. And while distance and time have separated them, their childhood bonds remain strong and the lives of their families will forever be entwined.
Inspired by the real history of the author's family and their immigration to the United States, The Three Daughters of Annam is an intimate examination of a country, colonized for most of its history, and its determination to be free.
In 1935 in the city of Nam Dinh in northern Việt Nam, Nhung, Mai, and Anh are inseparable and deeply loyal to each other. Growing up in vastly different worlds, yet united by their dreams, these three women navigate the treacherous French occupation, where even uttering "Việt Nam" becomes an act of rebellion.
Their lives soon diverge, sending each of their family lines down drastically different paths from Việt Nam to Paris to the United States. But their goals are the same: survive, thrive, and triumph over the adversities they and their homeland have endured. And while distance and time have separated them, their childhood bonds remain strong and the lives of their families will forever be entwined.
Inspired by the real history of the author's family and their immigration to the United States, The Three Daughters of Annam is an intimate examination of a country, colonized for most of its history, and its determination to be free.
Critics Review
“The Three Daughters of Annam is an epic that moves across decades, countries, and generations with a steady, beating heart—looking unflinchingly at how history bends lives differently, how war and diaspora render the triumphs and tragedies and small moments of daily life both meaningful and fleeting. Drawn from the author’s own family history, Nguyen manages the most delicate of balancing acts: a story of resilience that is both sweeping in scope and intimate in feeling.” —Rachel Hochhauser, New York Times bestselling author of Lady Tremaine
“An epic tale of friendship, love, loss and survival. Ambitious in its scope and intimate in its telling, The Three Daughters of Annam illuminates the impact of global politics on the lives of individuals as well as our capacity to triumph over adversity. An admirable achievement!”—Nguyen Phan Que Mai, global bestselling author of The Mountains Sing and Dust Child
“The Three Daughters of Annam is a sweeping story about the endurance of the human spirit. Through three memorable women and across three generations, Nguyen crafts an epic tale of friendship, love, and family. A resonant story about the ways in which a country and its people are shaped by the ravages of war and displacement, all the while maintaining their resilience and hope.”—Crystal Hana Kim, award-winning author of If You Leave Me and The Stone Home
“Spanning decades and continents, The Three Daughters of Annam by Phong Nguyen is a haunting elegy to times gone by and a country colonized by grief. Yet the souls of three young women, Anh, Mai, and Nhung, burn brightly with joy and humor and tenderness as they navigate migration and war, heartbreak and peace. Bonded as closely as sisters, these Three Musketeers and their unforgettable stories resonate through their descendants, their now independent nation, and the readers of this masterfully crafted novel.”—Helena Rho, author of Stone Angels
Praise for Bronze Drum
"Bronze Drum lured me in. It's a richly spun, deftly written tale of bravery, legend, and resistance--a compelling read."—Amina Gautier, author of At-Risk, Now We Will Be Happy, and The Loss of All Lost Things
"Riveting and brilliantly-crafted, Bronze Drum brings to life the story of The Trung Sisters—two fearless revolutionaries who led an army of Viet women in defeating the Han Chinese some 2000 years ago. Though their hard-fought independence was short-lived and often mythologized, Phong Nguyen crystalizes the sisters' lasting legacy in this epic retelling. A novel that evokes ancestral memory to witness and excavate that which must never be forgotten."—Natalia Sylvester, author of Everyone Knows You Go Home
“The story of the Trung sisters spans the tricky midrange between fact and myth, and Phong Nguyen’s ingenious retelling succeeds both as transportive adventure and as something more ambitious, recalling the work of fabulists like Italo Calvino and Angela Carter. The Bronze Drum is dreamlike and absorbing, epic and humane—a vivid evocation of histories that pass invisibly, whispered in ears across centuries, shifting with the times, finally bursting back into the light.”—Martin Seay, author of THE MIRROR THIEF
"’Girl Power’ may have originated with the Trung sisters who fought for Vietnamese independence in 40 CE. Phong Nguyen enlivens this historical moment in BRONZE DRUM, a sweeping and imaginative account of their efforts to form an army of women to fight for and preserve their freedom. This fast-paced novel features palace intrigue, sex, deception, scholarship, bravery, love, honor, magic and power. Nguyen has the rare ability to render events that happened long ago in a way that fells contemporary and even timely. I'm in awe of his storytelling powers and was captivated from the first page to the last.”—Christina Clancy, author of THE SECOND HOME and THE SHOULDER SEASON
"As groundbreaking as it is gripping, Phong Nguyen's BRONZE DRUM is filled with impeccably researched, vivid storytelling that blends history and myth in spellbinding ways. A masterful first novel--and an important one." —Liam Callanan, author of THE CLOUD ATLAS and PARIS BY THE BOOK
“Phong Nguyen’s novel Bronze Drum is part epic history, part romantic drama, and all mastery. The novel recounts the Vietnamese people’s astonishing 40 CE rebellion against their Han occupiers, led by the legendary Trung sisters and their female army. If you’re like me, you’ll devour this joyous, defiant novel while cheering for the Trungs and wishing their magnificent, feminist army could lead a rebellion here, today.”—Whitney Terrell, author of The Good Lieutenant
“When Beyoncé asked, ‘Who run the world?’ was she thinking about the legendary Trưng sisters? The sisters have long been revered as national icons in Vietnam, and this fictionalized account of their rise to military greatness . . . reminds us that the power of women is nothing new.”—Kirkus Reviews
| Author | Phong Nguyen |
|---|---|
| Duration | 12 hours |
| Release Date | |
| ISBN | 9781668659793 |
| Format | Audiobook |
| Publisher | Hachette Audio |
| Genre | Fiction: general and literary, Generational sagas, Historical fiction |
| Availability | US |
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