Writer Tran Duc Tien wins "Cricket Knight" Prize 2023
Hanoi (VNA) – Writer Tran Duc Tien was awarded the “Hiep si De
Men” (Cricket Knight) Prize at the presentation ceremony for the fourth "De Men
Award for Children" 2023 in Hanoi on May 31.
It is the first time
after a two-year absence that the organising board has found the winner of the grand prize of the "De Men Award for Children".
Speaking at the event, General
Director of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) Vu Viet Trang said that the Award, which was held by VNA’s The Thao
& Van Hoa (Sports & Culture) Newspaper, has gone through three
editions, contributing to nurturing the spiritual lives of children and young
talents in literature and arts.
The collection of works for
children by writer Tien, including "A lô!... Cậu đấy à?" (Hello! Is
that you?) and 10 other books have made him eligible for the esteemed award.
These works include "Ốc mượn hồn"
(Soul-Borrowing Snail, 1992); "Vương quốc vắng nụ cười" (The Kingdom
Without Smiles, 1993); "Dế mùa Thu" (Autumn Cricket, 1997); "Thằng
Cúp" (Little Cúp, 2001); "Làm mèo" (Being a Cat, 2003, reprinted
in 2015 and 2023); "Trăng vùi trong cỏ" (Moon Buried in the Grass,
2006); "Chiếc lông ngỗng trời" (The Feather of the Sky Goose, 2011);
"Những truyện hay viết cho thiếu nhi của Trần Đức Tiến" (Great
Stories Written for Children by Tran Duc Tien, 2013); "Trên đôi cánh chuồn
chuồn" (On Dragonfly Wings, 2015, reprinted in 2020); and "Xóm Bờ Giậu"
(The Riverside Village, 2019, reprinted in 2020, 2021, and 2022).
Four winners of the "Khát vọng
Dế Mèn" (Cricket Desire) Prize were also named, including a collection of
paintings by 11-year-old Hoang Nhat Quang from Lang Son province; "Ông Ba
Bị và những đứa trẻ trong mơ" (Mr. Ba Bi and the Children in Dreams, a
long story by Lac An; "Ở một nơi có rất nhiều rồng" (In a Place with
Many Dragons, a draft of a long story by Moc An; and "Vua ngan xóm hồ"
(The King of the Duckweed Village, a draft of a long story by writer Uong Trieu.
Two special prizes from the
jury were awarded to the works "Nghé ọ Hai Xoáy" (Nghé and the
Two Hair Whorls), a long story by Pham Anh Xuan, "Tôi, bố tôi, và…"
(I, My Dad, and...), "Từ những bức thư" (From the Letters) by
10-year-old Doan Lu Thuy Phuong.
This year, the organising
board received 121 entries, and 10 were selected for the final round.
As scheduled, The Thao
& Van Hoa Newspaper plans to hold the first solo exhibition for the young painter
Hoang Nhat Quang on June 8. Quang and his family want to contribute to the
"For the School of Children" charity programme launched by the newspaper,
in case any of his artworks are sold.
The programme was launched on April 14,
2022, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the newspaper’s first
publication (August 21), aiming to connect artists, philanthropists, and the education
sector in local communities to improve infrastructure of schools in remote
and disadvantaged areas. So far, it has raised 600 million VND (26,000 USD)./.