HA NOI (VNS)– A collection of war poems by Vietnamese and Japanese poets has just been published here.

Titled A Collection of Poems for Independence, Freedom and Requiem of Vietnam by 175 Poets, the 632-page collection is printed in Vietnamese, Japanese and English.

The book gathers pieces on war by Vietnamese writers since 10th century including national heroes and great writers in Viet Nam's literature history such as Tran Hung Dao (1228-1300), Nguyen Trai (1380-1442), Le Quy Don (1726-84) and Nguyen Du (1766-1820).

President Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969) was introduced in the book as the first writer of modern Vietnamese poetry in the early 20th century.

He was followed by writers during French and American wars like Huu Loan (1916-2010), Tran Dan (1926-1997), Che Lan Vien (1920-1989), Pham Tien Duat (1941-2007) and Tran Dang Khoa (1958).

The 70 modern poems by Japanese writers mostly describe their impressions on the brave sacrifice and special beauty of Vietnamese people and the country during and after the wars.

The collection ends with judgements and comments by Japanese researchers and translators. – VNS

caption: Cover of the collection, which is printed in three languages.