Mutual respect: Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Nick Ut (right) poses for a photo with veteran photojournalist Gian Thanh Son, editor of the newly released book Phong Vien Anh Nick Ut – Huyen Thoai Gian Di. — Photo thethaovanhoa.vn

HCM CITY (VNS)— A book on the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Nick Ut, who took the iconic wartime photo of a naked girl fleeing a napalm attack, was issued yesterday by the Vietnam News Agency Publishing House.

The 200-page book, Phong Vien Anh Nick Ut – Huyen Thoai Gian Di (Photojournalist Nick Ut – A Legend with A Pure Heart), includes 40 writings and interviews by foreign and Vietnamese journalists on the Vietnamese-American photographer and his career.

"I have a relationship with Nick Ut in both my work and private life. I respect his talent and personality," veteran photojournalist Gian Thanh Son, the book's editor, said.

Son met and interviewed Nick Ut in HCM City when the photographer in recent years visited and participated in training courses for young photographers in Viet Nam.

He spent three years to make the book. "I wanted my book to be useful for readers who want to learn more about photography and how the art affects the world."

The book features a collection of black-and-white war photos by Nick, who worked for the Associated Press (AP) during the American war in South Viet Nam.

Born in Long An Province, Nick Ut worked for the AP when he was 16 years old.

His wartime picture titled Napalm Girl shows nine-year-old Phan Thi Kim Phuc fleeing from her village after being severely burned on her back by a South Vietnamese napalm attack in Tay Ninh Province in 1972.

The work appeared on the covers of numerous publications around the world. For many people, it is an immortal symbol of the anti-war movement.

One year later, he received the Pulitzer Prize and a dozen international prizes for the photo.

Napalm Girl is still remembered and mentioned today.

The book also includes photos of Hollywood film stars and Vietnamese landscapes.

Ut now lives in Los Angles and works as a freelance photographer. — VNS