Bunkong Tuon is a Cambodian American writer and poet. He is the author of three full-length poetry collections. His writings have appeared in Copper Nickel, Massachusetts Review, New York Quarterly, The American Journal of Poetry, Diode Poetry Journal, among others. Tuon is poetry editor of Cultural Daily. He teaches at Union College, in Schenectady, NY.

• PART I: A Cambodian Family PortraitUnder the Tamarind TreeBirthLeaving CambodiaLok-Yeay and Her ChildrenBophaYellow BirdThe Old Man and the MermaidPART II: Surviving in AmericaDust from the SkyLuckyDawnWe Were RefugeesTom and JerryAmerican DreamLok-TaFriendsPu VaesnarEnclosed ParadiseThe Old Woman and Her DogA Simple MisunderstandingThe DoylesA February EveningThe KeysWhere is Samnang?ExposedThe LetterThe Letter # 2RageRat BoyGraduationPART III: A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Cambodian AmericanWhat Are You Doing With Your Life?Going West“Ana-herm” StreetA DreamBr_ndon LieuThe Writer’s ClubAnother BeginningA Dream on FireA New FamilyWhy Write?Dear Mr. SokPART IV: Koan KhmerLetter from Koan KhmerEpilogueAcknowledgments

“Koan Khmer takes us to the edges of interbeing. We travel with an orphan child named Samnang Sok, who has survived genocide—as legions of children around the globe do, and do not—as he tries to piece together a story strong enough to hold his life. With the generosity of a poet of witness, Tuon carefully and lovingly opens the space of refugee long enough for us to bear witness to the full brutal and beautiful experiences of Cambodian Americans. I feel like I have a new heart tattoo. I am grateful.” —Lidia Yuknavitch, author of Thrust and The Chronology of Water “Koan Khmer gives light to the Cambodian immigrant/refugee experience, which is unlike any other, and challenges the easy narratives we are fed by mainstream media about the immigrant experience. Transcending the survival narrative, Bunkong Tuon’s debut novel presents to readers a narrator who is not merely the keeper of stories but also the one who seeks, who endeavors, who is more than witness. This is not a book about survival. It is a book about striving.” —Ira Sukrungruang, author of Buddha’s Dog other Meditations