Phuc Tran’s book, Sigh, Gone, is an irreverent, funny, and moving memoir that won the 2021 Maine Literary Award for best memoir.                                               
Phuc and his close family escaped the collapse of South Vietnam in 1975 and along with his parents and brother made their way to Carlisle, Pennsylvania where he was one of the only Asian kids to grow up in the blue-collar town.  Wanting to become American, Phuc struggled with his need to fit in against the cultural and social implications of being part of an immigrant family.  This struggle propelled him into what the subtitle of his book declares as A Misfit’s Memoir about Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In.  And fight he did.

Join us for an evening of conversation with the author and our community led by Margery Irvine.  Community members are encouraged to come ready to be part of the evening's discussion. Topics will range from those covered in his book as well as how he has come to be known as an author, educator, classicist, and tattooer. Phuc Tran will also read from his book and discuss the writing process. The big question remains, though: how did he end up in Portland, Maine?

Books will be available for purchase.

This evening is supported by the Maine Humanities Council's Read ME program, the Clement and Linda McGillicuddy Humanities Center at the University of Maine, and Birds&Bones Tattoo Studio and Art Gallery.

About the book

Sigh, Gone: A Misfit’s Memoir about Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In

For anyone who has ever felt like they don't belong, Sigh, Gone shares an irreverent, funny, and moving tale of displacement and assimilation woven together with poignant themes from beloved works of classic literature.

In 1975, during the fall of Saigon, Phuc Tran immigrates to America along with his family. By sheer chance, they land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a small town where the Trans struggle to assimilate into their new life. In this coming-of-age memoir told through the themes of great books such as The Metamorphosis, The Scarlet Letter, The Iliad, and more, Tran navigates the push and pull of finding and accepting himself despite the challenges of immigration, feelings of isolation, and teenage rebellion, all while attempting to meet the rigid expectations set by his immigrant parents.

About the author

From Phuc's website: "Well, since I wrote a whole memoir about myself, it seems weird to write a short version of it, but here goes (and since the memoir is in the first person, I don’t think that I should refer to myself in the third person—Phuc would find that so pretentious).

"I was born in Sài Gòn Việt Nam, my family fled to America in 1975, and I grew up in Carlisle PA. Reared on a steady diet of Saturday morning cartoons, John Hughes, Star Wars, Bones Brigade videos, and bootlegged cassettes of Minor Threat and TSOL, I graduated high school in 1991. I majored in Classical Languages and Literature at Bard College—how did no one talk me out of that?—got my Master’s Degree at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and then moved to New York City in 1997. There I apprenticed to be a tattooer while teaching Latin during the day, and I’ve been teaching and tattooing ever since. I’ve never been good at staying in one lane—ask my wife about my driving."

His 2012 TEDx talk “Grammar, Identity, and the Dark Side of the Subjunctive” was featured on NPR’s Ted Radio Hour.

Phuc's fun facts: 

I’m a Scorpio, I ride a Triumph Thruxton, I love boxing movies, and I’ve broken the same pinkie TWICE in exactly the same spot (my own pinkie, not someone else’s).

I pronounce my first name like Luke.

Visit Phuc's website by clicking here.

Book Reviews

“The United States was already a better country because Phuc Tran refused to change his name. Then he went even further in changing this country by giving us this bold, funny, and profane memoir: a portrait of a young punk refugee and of heartland America itself, each of them as defiant and compelling as the other.”

— Viet Thanh Nguyen, author of Pulitzer-Prize-winning The Sympathizer and The Refugees

"Sigh, Gone is a memoir reminiscent of Peter Orner and Michael Patrick MacDonald, a journey of self-discovery, humanizing experiences, and connections made through the punk rock counter-culture and the thrills of being a lifelong reader. This is a powerfully entertaining and inspirational delight."

--Tim Huggins, Bookseller at Brookline Booksmith

2021 Maine Literary Award for Memoir
2020 NEIBA Prize for Nonfiction
Best of 2020 — Amazon Books

"One of my favorite memoirs of the year." – Audible
"The best, the funniest, and the most heartfelt memoir of the year."  ✪  BookPage
"Complex and rewarding..."   Publishers Weekly
"Affecting, deeply felt..."  ✪  Booklist