Another year going by means announcing another literary prize winner at Longwood University. As an annual tradition for the university English department, Monique Truong has been selected as the recipient for the 2021 John Dos Passos Prize for Literature. Truong was chosen from a list of five finalists of writers whose work is known for being uniquely talented and underappreciated.

The John Dos Passos Prize for Literature is the oldest literary award given exclusively by Virginia universities. Since the prize was originally founded back in 1980, Monique Truong is now the 40^th recipient of the prize.

Based in Brooklyn, New York, Truong is a Vietnamese American author who has written a variety of award-winning novels such as The Book of Salt, Bitter in the Mouth, and The Sweetest Fruits. She is well-known for her essays and short stories too, which have appeared in publications such as The Washington Post and The Huffington Post. In addition, Truong will debut her first children’s picture book, Mai’s Áo Dài, that she cowrote with Thai Nguyen; the book will be out in May 2023.

Truong’s talent also reaches out to music-lovers with songs and opera ensembles. Her most recent opera called Or/And will be performed from April 29-30 2022 at the Asia Society Texas Center in Houston.

 Truong will be giving a reading of some of her work in person on Longwood’s campus in early April 2022. An official announcement will be made as soon as a date is confirmed.

For more information on the Dos Passos reading event, visit the Longwood University website.