HA NOI (VNS)— Writer Bui Ngoc Tan, 80, passed away on Thursday after many years fighting cancer.

Tan was born in 1934 in the northern city of Hai Phong. He worked as a journalist for Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper under the pen name Tan Sac in 1954. By the age of 20, he had many stories printed in newspapers.

He has also written many novels and memoirs. His novel Bien Va Chim Boi Ca (The Sea and the Kingfisher) won the grand prize at the French literature festival Livre&Mer (Book and the Sea) in 2012.

His burial service will be held today in Hai Phong. — VNS