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Bunkong Tuon

@bunkong.bsky.social
223 followers 210 following 80 posts

Khmer-American. Pushcart-winning poet and writer. Debut novel Koan Khmer out now. Father. Husband. Teacher. Former refugee. Cosmic surveyor. www.bunkongtuon.com

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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
My daughter wrote on her card, “I can’t believe this is the only day you get credit for your work though! 😞” Amen to that! We made her mother breakfast, presented her with gifts, and hugged her in gratitude. Happy Mother’s Day to those who celebrate!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
I shared this poem on FB & someone said, sounds like you’re not a primary caretaker. The comment hurt and I deleted it. I have always try to be a good father… and true committed parenting is hard. Hardest thing I have ever done.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
A poem in honor of Marvin Bell's Dead Man poems. In my poem, the dead man is an immigrant who has become a ghost to the old country. Huge thanks to editors Jose Angel Aragus, Quintin Collins, and others at Salamander for supporting my work!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Half of my family is sick this Christmas season. I’m trying my best to hold it together, do what must be done. Music has been a source of inspiration and strength. At night, I listen to music and write poetry. Happy Holidays, All.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
I'll be doing a Zoom reading next Thursday. If you are interested in poetry about family and refugee, please consider attending. I always read (and write) from the heart. Thanks to Ohio Poet Laureate, Kari Gunter-Seymour, for putting this together.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
I’m recovering, slowly regaining strength. The doctor said I should be back to normal six weeks after the surgery. The other night, my family and I walked around the neighborhood looking at Halloween decorations. Getting ready to take the kids trick-or-treating tomorrow.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
I had an emergency surgery this past weekend. I’m slowly recovering. I want to express my respect and deep gratitude to the nurses, surgeon, & anesthesiologist at Ellis Hospital for saving my life. Thank you!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 04/10/2025
Here's a list of journals that folks recommended: Long Poem Magazine (UK), The Broken Spine (UK), Last Syllable, Missouri Review, Literary Imagination, Blackbird, Ploughshares (for Fall reading period), Adroit, Cincinnati Review, Lothorian Poetry Journal (1/2)
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 21/09/2025
Took my daughter skating. Teaching her about foot placement, pushing, carving. I got on a board too and I felt like a kid again. That’s me, a kid from the 80s.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 07/09/2025
I’m honored to be awarded Union College’s Stillman Prize for Faculty Excellence in Research. “Tuon writes poems, stories and personal essays that establish space for Cambodian American literature . . . ." Happy Sunday, folks! www.union.edu/news/stories...
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 24/08/2025
Sometimes I catch myself parenting in the shadow of the Khmer Rouge. Thanks to @shopoetryjournal.bsky.social and its editors for publishing this poem. Happy Sunday, All!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 10/08/2025
I always tell students to write from the heart about things that matter. Life is short, I tell them. Be true to your authentic self. (an excerpt of an interview on craft I did with Professor Khem Aryal)
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 20/07/2025
Last day at the beach. Dad and his daughter exercising. Happy Sunday, Everyone!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 13/07/2025
The other day, talking to a student about the state of our world, I was reminded of what I need to do as a parent, the challenges of raising my kids in these turbulent times: to not let the darkness of the world infect their childhood, to keep the light in. Hugs to all this Sunday morning.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
Unprompted, my son wrote “LOVE” in the sand. A message that is so much needed in this mutilated world. Love to all.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 18/05/2025
My poetry and novel are part of the Proleung Khmer exhibit at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. Deep gratitude to the Khmer folks in Lowell for their generous support. I went to read in March of this year a stranger, and they welcomed me with open arms. Thank you for accepting this koan Khmer.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 04/05/2025
Happy to have a poem in the Michigan Quarterly Review. There are things that still won’t let me go. Thanks to editor Marcelo Hernandez Castillo for this incredible genre-bending, border-crossing, multimedia issue on memory and migrations. I will spend some time with it.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
Just in case I have followers from Southern California. I have several readings this weekend and a CSULB event on Monday, Apr. 14 (12:30-1:45 in SPA 209). It's been a long time since I last set foot in Southern California. I consider it the place of my rebirth! The prodigal son’s return.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 05/04/2025
She stays in her room all day, drawing, sketching, being with her own thoughts. She has her art displayed in the state museum. She is my daughter. I’m proud of her.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 16/03/2025
Super excited to return to Lowell, MA, next week to introduce my debute novel, Koan Khmer, to the city with the second largest Cambodian population in the U.S. Thanks to Christine Su for her kind & generous support. I’m very honored to do this.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 01/03/2025
I am the featured reader at the historic Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs next week (March 5, a Wednesday). Dylan performed at Caffe Lena in '61 & '62. Quite an honor to be standing on the same stage. Please drop by and participate in the open mic. Happy Saturday!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
I had a great time reading at Stockton University. The students were listening deeply to my stories and poems & asking smart, terrific questions afterward. Thanks @adammiyashiro.bsky.social for being a wonderful host!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 26/01/2025
I have a few poems in the current issue of the Journal of Southeast Asian American Education & Advancement. “Pomegranate” is for my son. Thanks to editor Bryan Thao Worra for his support. Please give it a read when you have a minute. Thanks! And Happy Sunday! docs.lib.purdue.edu/jsaaea/vol20...
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 19/01/2025
Super happy that “Wanting Kids” is a runner-up for @shopoetryjournal.bsky.social Prize. Huge thanks to editors @domkeykong.bsky.social and @johnnycordova.bsky.social The world depicted in this poem is no longer mine. It’s like it’s somebody else’s life. Strange, dreamlike, so carefree.
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 01/01/2025
My daughter took this photo. Have a brilliant and beautiful New Year, friends!
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 29/12/2024
2024 has been a good year in terms of writing. I had two books out: a chapbook and a debut novel. I also won a Pushcart prize, which I thought I would never win in a million years. Over this winter break, I was able to sit and read the 2025 Pushcart anthology, (1/2) #Pushcart #CambodianAmerican
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 24/12/2024
She is somewhere between innocence and knowledge, picking up on what kids at school say about Santa & deciding what to do with that info. She tells us: whoever says that Santa doesn’t exist are party poopers. Like previous years, she wrote her letter to Santa. #ChristmasEve
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 16/12/2024
I wrote Koan Khmer because I wanted the young generations of Khmer Americans to imagine what their elders went through to build homes in the United States, instilling in them a deep sense of gratitude for their elders & pride in our people and culture. #KhmerAmericans www.amazon.com/Koan-Khmer-N...
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 08/12/2024
I have done a lot of readings since the publication of Koan Khmer in August but I was so nervous about this one. My aunts, cousins, and their kids were in the audience. And the community showed up too. (1/2)
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Bunkong Tuon @bunkong.bsky.social · 01/12/2024
Koan Khmer is returning to his roots. If you are in the area next Saturday, please drop by the Revere Public Library on Beach Street to hear me read from my debut novel. I’d love to see you. Super excited about this. Happy Sunday, Everyone!
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