One of the most amazing experiences I had as writer was when the great writer Russell Banks read a section of my book Perfume Dreams out loud in New York and in front of 300 people.

I nearly had an out of body experience, hearing my text made new by an exceptional voice.

Pen description:
“The PEN/Beyond Margins Award celebrates outstanding books by writers of color published in the United States during the previous year and seeks to encourage racial and ethnic diversity within the literary community. Spanning an impressive range, the works of this year’s Beyond Margins Award recipients are about the complex beauty of the places we call home and the cultural contraband we take with us when we go.

The event recognized the accomplishments of the 2006 PEN/Beyond Margins Award winners: Richard Blanco, author of Directions to the Beach of the Dead; Andrew Lam, author of Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora; Ed Bok Lee, author of Real Karaoke People; Caryl Phillips, author of Dancing in the Dark; and Jennifer Tseng, author of The Man With My Face.”

So here it is for people who want to hear it:
Pen Beyond Margins Award Reading 2006

Andrew