Lan Cao
Encyclopedia
Lan Cao is the author of the 1997 novel Monkey Bridge
and is a professor of law at the College of William and Mary
.
Cao was born in Vietnam
and experienced the Vietnam War
as a civilian
. She moved to the United States
when she was 13. Cao received her B.A. in political science from Mount Holyoke College
in 1983 and her J.D. from the Yale University
law school.
Monkey Bridge is the semi-autobiographical story of a mother and daughter who leave Vietnam to come to the United States. It is considered to be "the first novel by a Vietnamese American
about the war experience and its aftermath".
Monkey Bridge
Monkey Bridge, published in 1997, is the debut novel of Vietnamese American attorney and writer Lan Cao. Lan Cao is professor of international law at William and Mary Law School. She left Vietnam in 1975. In many significant ways, Cao's narrative follows the tradition of Maxine Hong Kingston's...
and is a professor of law at the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
.
Cao was born in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and experienced the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
as a civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
. She moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
when she was 13. Cao received her B.A. in political science from Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a liberal arts college for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It was the first member of the Seven Sisters colleges, and served as a model for some of the others...
in 1983 and her J.D. from the Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
law school.
Monkey Bridge is the semi-autobiographical story of a mother and daughter who leave Vietnam to come to the United States. It is considered to be "the first novel by a Vietnamese American
Vietnamese American
A Vietnamese American is an American of Vietnamese descent. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American group....
about the war experience and its aftermath".