Walking with 'The Emperor of Gladness,' author Ocean Vuong

WBUR | By Emiko Tamagawa

Published July 23, 2026 at 12:00 PM EDT

The cover of "The Emperor of Gladness" and author Ocean Vuong. (Courtesy of Penguin Random House and Gioncarlo Valentine)

Acclaimed author and poet Ocean Vuong‘s latest book, “The Emperor of Gladness,” is out in paperback.

Here & Now‘s Emiko Tamagawa took a walk with Vuong by the Mill River in Massachusetts to talk about the book and the inspiration he finds on his river walks.

Book excerpt: ‘The Emperor of Gladness’

By Ocean Vuong

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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