Phan Ngọc Trâm is the author of 'Cá Kịch' (Carp Diem). Photos courtesy of the author

HÀ NỘI — Phan Ngọc Trâm, a 12th-grade student from Nguyễn Huệ Specialised High School in Hà Nội has just released her first bilingual English-Vietnamese book, titled Cá Kịch (Carp Diem), which reflects the aspirations of young Vietnamese who want to express themselves creatively.

The story is about My, a young girl with a dream and a journey to create a piece of art. However, her path is far from easy, as she faces challenges with emotions, enthusiasm and lacking motivation, which all seem to deadlocked.

As she struggles to create something wonderful she unexpectedly meets a fish named Nhân and the two unlikely friends – one a fish, the other a human – begin their journey, growing to be close companions with a shared desire to create an outstanding piece of work to present to famous audiences.

Carp Diem is presented with nearly 100 pages in both Vietnamese and English. It was first written by Trâm in English, followed by the Vietnamese version. However, when writing in both languages simultaneously, she demonstrated a remarkable ability to translate the content in a clear and easy-to-understand way.

Carp Diem is presented with nearly 100 pages in both Vietnamese and English.

Writer Hoa Anh praised the book and said that young people have numerous ways to express their stories through writing, and they often incorporate imaginative elements to make the narrative more accessible. Adding that Carp Diem follows an interesting and creative fiction style.

Phùng Mai, the author’s teacher, speaking at the book launch, said she was most pleased that Trâm had the courage to speak up and express her thoughts – something not very common at this age among students.

The teacher hoped that other children would be motivated in the 12th-grade English class and they would feel confident to express themselves, especially in the creative fields. VNS