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Minh-Thu Pham was born on September 24, 1986 in Saigon, Vietnam.
She started pursuing the literature major in high school. Since 2008, Minh-Thu became a graphic designer and has continued to write a few novels but not published them. The Chronicles of AlefA - Sleeping Beauty is the first novel introduced by the writer.
She is currently living with her husband in Trento, Italy.
Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite
The Chronicles of AlefA - Sleeping Beauty by Minh-Thu Pham is a collection of stories belonging to the fantasy genre. All of these stories are set in a place called AlefA which has two suns and it is in the shape of an hour glass. People travel back and forth into different times and eras, and strive to find their destinies. I don’t know why, but this novel (or collection of stories) made me feel like it should be taught to literature students. There are layers upon layers, themes, structures, symbols and so many other literary expressions that it made my inner literature student sigh.
There was so much going on in the story, and each story has its own layers of perfection. At first I thought AlefA would be the name of the protagonist, but I was pleasantly surprised to find the name belonged to a continent. The hourglass shape of the continent denotes the time dilemma of the place, which is actually really cool. I really appreciated the map at the beginning of the novel; it made some things clear and kept the confusion at bay.
Lastly, I would like to comment on the way the novel was written. It could have been jumbled, but it was seamless and flawless with a special charm. It was perfectly written, it had the right words, structure and was beautifully constructed. I’m so glad that Minh-Thu Pham decided to translate the novel. Otherwise, I would not have had the opportunity to read it. Also, I really liked the cover.
