The beauty of Lý Sơn Island is captured in the 500-page book Lý Sơn Hôm Nay (Lý Sơn Island Today) by photographer Nguyễn Á of HCM City. The book, printed by the Việt Nam News Agency’s Publishing House, features nearly 1,000 colour photos about the island’s history, traditional culture and lifestyle.

HCM CITY —  Photographer Nguyễn Á’s photo book on Lý Sơn Island, a famous tourist site in central Quảng Ngãi Province, has been released in HCM City. 

The 500-page book, Lý Sơn Hôm Nay (Lý Sơn Island Today), includes nearly 1,000 colour photos featuring 150 stories about the island’s history and traditional culture and lifestyle.   

The photos were selected from a collection of several thousand works by the photographer who spent several months travelling around the island.

Photos of female farmers as well as blue seas and golden sands are highlighted in the book.

Traditional festivals and landscapes such as Câu Cave, Đụn Isle and Hang Beach are also featured.

“All of my works are in praise of Lý Sơn Island and its people,” said photographer Á. “Each photo presents a story of life, love and dreams of farmers, who have worked to build their land.”

Lý Sơn Island is famous for its garlic. Local farmers produce more than 2,500 tonnes per year.

The island has special fossilised rocks believed to date back 4,000 to 6,000 years, and tombs belonging to the Sa Huỳnh culture in the first and second century AD.

Eruptions from a now-dormant volcano 25 to 30 million years ago left a landscape with rocks, caves, cliffs and a lake.

Local authorities and residents are working to have the island recognised as a Global Geo-Park by UNESCO.

Visitors to the island can view centuries-old houses used to worship the souls of sailors who died during long voyages to the Hoàng Sa (Paracel) and Trường Sa (Spratly) islands during the Nguyễn Dynasty (17th century).

One of the island’s most popular sites is a museum displaying more than 200 ancient documents and 100 exhibits that prove the Paracels and Spratlys belong to Việt Nam. 

Printed by the Vietnam News Agency’s Publishing House, Lý Sơn Hôm Nay is available in bookstores. — VNS