Orientation Book

Orientation Book 2024

"Seamlessly transitioning between the absurd and the tenderhearted, balancing acerbic humor with sharp emotional depth, Afterparties offers an expansive portrait of the lives of Cambodian-Americans. As the children of refugees carve out radical new paths for themselves in California, they shoulder the inherited weight of the Khmer Rouge genocide and grapple with race, sexuality, friendship, and family." ~Good Reads

Overview of this page's contents:

  • Afterparties on-campus tie-in events (Fall 2024-Spring 2025)
  • Summer online book club meet-up information
  • Background resources for the book, Cambodian history and culture, the legacy of trauma, and more

Follow CSWIMstagram for updates about on-campus orientation book tie-in events throughout the fall and spring semesters and to learn more about the CSWIM's Fall 2024 ID1 "Doing College" Workshop Series with topics ranging from managing the reading load of college classes to finding your voice in fast-moving class discussions, getting started with research and other paper prompts, reading like a writer, narrowing from a topic to a research question, demystifying citations, and motivating your writing to engage real readers. 

Be sure to check out the background resources below for "Afterparties" gathered by the Orientation Book Partners, this year's selection committee, Director of College Writing, Jenny Thomas, and other staff and faculty. Learn more about the history of the Cambodian genocide that undergirds the book; gain insight from the field of psychology about the impact of parents' trauma on their kids; dive into Cambodian poetry, dance, and music; check out interviews and articles from the late author and his friends and colleagues; and view documentaries and films related to the book, including the story of the "Donut King", Ted Ngoc--the reason why 90% of privately-owned donut shops in California are under Cambodian ownership.

"Afterparties" Orientation Book Tie-in Events

Wednesday, September 25, 4:30 pm in the Rose Hills Theater
Panel Discussion "On the Afterlife of Genocide: A Community Conversation on Race, Sexuality, Migration, and Survival in Afterparties."

Join us for an insightful discussion over coffee and donuts on the lived experiences of the current generation of Cambodian Americans. Featuring an array of Asian-America scholars, community organizers, and educators, this panel draws on Anthony Veasna So's groundbreaking text, Afterparties, to explore issues of race, sexuality, migration, and modern violence. The dialogue will consider how stories and narratives across Cambodian America resonate with current events facing Asian Americans, as well as other marginalized peoples. By incorporating themes of generational trauma and cultural identity, this conversation aims to deepen our understanding of the complex realities faced by not only Cambodian communities in the United States, but all of us who are reckoning with the past, present, and future of genocide.

Wednesday, October 2, Friday, October 4, or Sunday, October 6
Reading and Writing Workshop: The Mystery of a Murderous Despot

As a part of the ID1 "Doing College" Workshop Series, Director of College Writing, Jenny Thomas, will co-lead a 90-minute interactive session with Associate Dean and Professor April Mayes (History) entitled "Reading Like a Writer: Noticing the Moves Scholars Make in Academic Writing."

Workshop overview:

Cambodia's Pol Pot led the infamous Khmer Rouge party in the 1970s and was responsible for the deaths of a staggering nearly 25% of Cambodia's population from malnutrition, disease, or politically motivated murder between 1975 and 1979. Participants in this workshop will explore the brief introductory chapter to Professor David Chandler's historical/political biography of this dictator, Brother Number One, examining the text as an example of scholarly writing within the fields of history and political science.

Chandler asks and workshop attendees will consider together:

  • "Who was Pol Pot?"
  • "What did he and his colleagues have in mind?"
  • "What were the sources of the revolution and its extraordinary violence?"
  • and perhaps the most puzzling mystery: Why, when interviewing people who knew this man--one of the most violent dictators in human history--was it so difficult to find anyone who would speak ill of him?

Writing about his encounters with individuals who had known Pol Pot in his childhood, during his years as a student and later school teacher, and even during his deadly political career, Chandler notes:

None of the people I spoke to--including several who live thousands of miles from Cambodia and whose families were savaged by the Pol Pot regime--were prepared to associate the person they had known with the horrors of the 1970s. Victins of Pol Pot's regime, they were unwilling to alter or deny their relatively pleasant recollections of the man.

To his brother and sister-in-law, for example, Saloth Sar [Pol Pot'] was a sweet-tempered, equable child....Among his students and his colleagues in the clandestine Communist movement... a man who met him in the late 1950s, for example, said, 'I saw immediately that I could become his friend for life.'

Similar testimony has emerged in confessions from S-21 [a Khmer Rouge torture facility].. and Red Khmer defectors.... None of the defectors, although they were free to do so (as those being tortured at S-21 were not), singled out Pol Pot's behavior or personality as a reason for...deserting the Communist movement. Instead, most of them came away with memories of a man they regarded almost as a saint.

Focusing on these unnerving and deeply thought-provoking questions, we'll explore the "moves" this text makes as a piece of scholarly writing, considering what it can teach us about reading strategies and discovering how we can use our reading in college to hone our academic writing skills and strategies.

The workshop will be offered three times, and all attendees will receive an entry in the CSWIM Fall 2024 special events raffle or prizes ranging from 2 Disneyland tickets to restaurant and movie gift cards, Zip Car rental credits, beautiful Cambodian art prints, CSWIM swag and more (drawing at the Long Night Against Procrastination write-in on Sunday, November 24.)

  • Wednesday, October 2, 5:30-7 pm in the Frank Dining Hall Blue Room (with special guest, Professor April Mayes from the History department)
  • Friday, October 4, 2-3:30 pm in the CSWIM (with snacks)
  • OR Sunday, September 29, 11 am-12:30 pm in the CSWIM (brunch served: waffles, bagels, fruit, juice, coffee, and tea)

RSVPs are appreciated but not required.

Friday, October 18, 1-3 pm in the CSWIM (SCC 148)
Generative Creative Writing Workshop with local author, Neelanjana Banerjee

Limited to 16 participants: reserve your spot here!

In this 2-hour creative writing workshop, we'll use stories from Anthony Veasna So's Afterparties as inspiration for our own writing. Along with So's incredible characterizations of the experience of inheriting the trauma of genocide, we'll investigate his brilliant use of POV ("Three Women of Chuck Donuts" and "Superking Son Scores Again") and explore writing about ritual, superstition, and celebration ("Maly, Maly, Maly", "The Monks", and "We Would Have Been Princes!").

Facilitator:

Neelanjana Banerjee is a writer whose work appears in journals like Prairie Schooner, Weird Sister, and Virginia Quarterly Review. She is a co-editor of Indivisible and The Coiled Serpent. With an MFA from San Francisco State and a BA from Oberlin, Banerjee has been a resident at Hedgebrook and received scholarships to attend writing workshops. Her journalism has appeared in Teen Vogue and other publications. Based in Los Angeles, she is the Managing Editor of Kaya Press and teaches writing at UCLA.

Not only limited to fiction, this workshop is designed to be generative across genres (poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction). The workshop is limited to 16 participants. Reserve your spot or join the waiting list.

Pomona CSWIM Afterparties Tie-in Film Series

  • Tuesday, October 22, 8-9:30 pm in the Rose Hills Theater: "The Donut King" documentary. 

    Enjoy coffee, tea, and treats from the best-kept secret local Cambodian-owned donut shop, Upland Donuts, as we follow the fascinating rise and tragic fall of Cambodian immigrant and donut magnate Ted Ngoy, the man behind the fact that 90% of independent donut shops in California are owned by Cambodian-American families. This classic rags-to-riches American story (with a glazed twist!) is a compelling look at one segment of the Asian-American immigrant community, the legacy of the Cambodian genocide, small business entrepreneurship, family, and the promise and perils of "the American dream." Watch the trailer. 

  • Thursday, October 31, 6:30 - 8:30 pm in the Rose Hills Theater: "Nang Nak," a classic Thai horror film from the country known for producing many of the best scary movies in Asia. 

    In the third short story in Afterparties--"Maly, Maly, Maly"--17-year-old Maly, who lost her mother to suicide, vividly remembers this film for its portrayal of a "badass" mother who gets revenge on everyone who wronged her. The movie tells the tale of teenage "Nak"--a devoted ghost wife and mother--and her unsuspecting husband, who returns from war to his wife, unaware that she died in his absence and is now a haunting spirit. A tale of love and tragedy that crosses the barrier of life and death, this 1999 thriller is based on a supposedly true story that has become one of the most popular ghost tales. Join us on Halloween evening for popcorn and one of the highest-grossing films in Thailand's history. Watch the trailer

  • Tuesday, November 19, 6:30-8:30 in the Rose Hills Theater: "The Killing Fields" 

    This 1984 biographical drama portrays the experiences of two journalists--Cambodian Dith Pran and American Sydney Schanberg--attempting to document the deadly actions of the Khmer Rouge regime during the 1970s Cambodian genocide. The film was nominated for seven Oscars, including "Best Picture," and won "Best Cinematography," "Best Editing," and "Best Supporting Actor" for Cambodian newcomer Haing S. Ngor. It was also awarded "Best Film" and "Best Actor in a Leading Role" at the 38th British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs.) Watch the trailer.

  • Date(s) and location TBD: "I Told Sunset About You" Queer Asian Miniseries

    Winner of the "International Drama of the Year" at the 2021 Seoul International Drama Awards, this critically acclaimed Thai queer coming-of-age miniseries tells the story of two boys, Teh and Oh'Aew, growing up in a Chinese-Thai community on the southern island of Phuket. Initially, they are close childhood friends, but the two fall out, leading to total estrangement. When they meet again as teenagers, both striving to be accepted into the best Communication Arts college program in Thailand to fulfill their mutual dream of becoming actors, they turn into rivals. This poignant enemies-to-lovers tale highlights friendship, family, and coming to terms with queer identity in the context of a traditional Asian community. Watch the trailer.

Summer Online Book Club Meet-Ups led by current Pomona students

To encourage dialogue and connection around "Afterparties" before the official seminar-style discussion on campus during Orientation Week (led by faculty and staff from across the college), the Pomona Center for Speaking, Writing, and the Image (the CSWIM--Pomona's writing center) gathered together a team of Orientation Book Partners. During the first two weeks of August 2024, these current students kicked off the year's orientation book events with a series of casual book club meet-ups over Zoom in which more than 10% of the incoming class participated! Each conversation featured a different short story from the book.

  • Thursday, August 1 at 1 pm (Pacific). Story 3: "Maly, Maly, Maly" led by Hlib Olhovskyi '27, Undeclared (considering English, History or Media Studies), Sebastian Amador '27, Philosophy and Linguistics, and Serena Li '26, Asian Studies and Asian American Studies. (August 1 meeting link)
  • Sunday, August 4 at 2 pm (Pacific). Story 4: "The Shop" led by Jake Chang '26, Public Policy Analysis and History and Eli Protas '25, English and Math. (August 4 meeting link)
  • Monday, August 5 at 6 pm (Pacific): Story 2: "Superking Son Strikes Again" led by Jessie Zhang '26, Media Studies and Ameya Teli '27, Undeclared, considering English/Environmental Analysis. (August 5 meeting link)
  • Sunday, August 11th at 12 noon and 7 pm (Pacific). The times for the remaining two summer book club series meet-ups were selected with international students in Europe, Asia, and Africa in mind, but anyone and everyone was welcome, even if they had already participated in one of the other sessions. (Sunday noon meeting link; Sunday 7pm meeting link)

Chapter overviews

Story 1: Three Women of Chuck's Donuts

After a relatively civil divorce, Cambodian-American mother, Sothy, finds herself the owner of “Chucks Doughnuts” in suburban Stockton, Central California. Pushing pastries all day, Sothy wonders how it is possible that her hands are as worn as her mother’s, who suffered under a genocidal regime. When an unknown man comes into the store several nights in a row to sit at a booth, staring out the window and leaving apple fritters uneaten, Sothy’s two teenage daughters, who work late night shifts with their mom during their summer break, take notice; especially when Sothy remarks, “of course he's Khmer [Cambodian].” Just what is being Khmer and why do they recognize him as such with only a few cursory words spoken between them? The question preoccupies Tevy, 16 years old, and working on a paper about identity for a philosophy course at the local community college. She makes a plan to interview him while her mom is away from the shop, confident his answers will earn her an A. Alarmingly, the man bears a striking resemblance to Sothy’s ex-husband. She agonizes about whether they're related, acutely aware of a debt hanging over their heads from her mobster brother-in-law, who was involved with the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime back in Cambodia. The women of Chuck’s Donuts may not know this somber man's backstory, but they “know this man. We’ve carried him our whole lives.”

Story 2: Superking Son Strikes Again

Superking Son Strikes Again: Superking Son, a once-lauded local and state athletic star, is now overshadowed by the mundane responsibilities of running his family’s Superking grocery store in a Cambodian immigrant community in the Central Valley of California. Sinking into depression as he deals with exotic fruit imports and the stench of raw meats day in and day out, he still manages to command the respect of the neighborhood residents, despite his harsh demeanor, menial job, and rapidly-aging body. Superking son remains a revered badminton coach for the local Cambo boys, that is until a young, hotshot rival enters the picture and complicates the scene, bringing out intergenerational tensions and traumas and challenging the bit of glory to which he has desperately been clinging. Who will win a high-stakes badminton game that pits old and new sports heroes against each other and what does the outcome mean for the younger generation of Cambos sorting out their identities in their multicultural community?

Story 3: Maly, Maly, Maly

Maly, Maly, Maly: Maly, the high school-aged daughter of “an immigrant woman who just couldn’t beat her memories of the genocide”, has a complicated relationship with Ma Eng, the great aunt who raised her from a young age after her mother’s death. As Ma Eng and other community elders prepare for a ceremony honoring Maly’s mom’s reincarnation in a recently-born family member, Maly and her cousin and confidant, Ves, escape the confusing family and cultural dynamics for a bit, hiding out and getting high in their uncle’s video rental store. Musing about the ways media has helped raise and enculturate them while also violating their minds and reminiscing about a Thai horror film about a vengeful ghost mother that they watched together as kids, Ves hallucinates, beginning to reconcile his struggles with his hometown, his queerness, and the cousins’ relationship to tradition and trauma as he gets ready to leave for a solitary college life in LA. Maly, who will be left behind in Central California, suddenly feels compelled to meet this baby who supposedly bears her mom’s soul (a character who will return in a later chapter as a nurse caring for Ma Eng on her deathbed in a nursing home.)

Story 4: The Shop

The Shop: After graduating from college, a directionless narrator returns home to his dad's struggling car repair shop to pass the time as he waits for the next thing in life. He both admires and finds himself frustrated by the sacrificial way his father tries to support and employ so many Cambodian community members and refuses to charge customers full price for the work, despite the toll it takes on him and the family. As everyone is making expensive preparations to welcome a monk whose blessing is hoped could turn around the shop’s financial prospects, we meet a colorful range of community members similarly caught in stasis around the store, juggling family and relationship priorities and strains while feeling pressure to figure out what comes next.

Story 8: Somaly Serey, Serey Somaly

Serey, a second-generation Cambodian-American, works as a nurse in a hospice for terminally ill elders. She has been assigned to the care of her great-aunt, Ma Eng, who lost her neice, Somaly, to death by suicide, prompted by inescapable memories of the Cambodian genocide. As a newborn, Serey was determined by the local monks to possess the reincarnated soul of her relative, leading to a complicated relationship with Somaly’s adult daughter, Maly. Haunted by her family’s beliefs and a conflicted sense of identity, Serey considers passing along a pendant that she inherited from Ma Eng, which belonged to Somaly and seems filled with her trauma, causing recurring nightmares. All she hopes for is liberation, and with Ma Eng on her deathbed, she sees a chance to seize it. When Maly comes to visit the bedside with her own children, Serey considers passing along the pendant with its heavy memories of the ghost to one of Maly's kids. Can she escape the generational curse of her family’s trauma?

Email cswim@bonaprinting.com if you did not receive your copy of the book.

Background Resources for Afterparties

We've compiled these resources to provide context for and extend the book. Follow CSWIMstagram and check back on this page for updates about tie-in events on campus during Fall and Spring 2024.

History and political context

Learn about the Cambodian genocide and the history behind the wave of Cambodian immigration to the US

Legacy of trauma

"How Parents' Trauma Leaves Biological Traces in Children"

Cambodian poetry, dance, and music

Read Cambodian poetry (more here once you have library.claremont.edu access)

Instagram account of the Longbeach, CA Cambodian Performing Arts Center

Khmer Classical Dance: YouTube videos

Khmer Original Music movement

Interviews with the author’s family and friends, podcast clips, and other articles

“A Young Literary Star Makes His Posthumous Debut with ‘Afterparties’”: National Public Radio tribute to Anthony Veasna So

"Before my Boyfriend Died Suddenly, We Were Two Writers in Love": BuzzFeed piece by Alex Torrez, Anthony's partner

"Straight through Cambo Town" So reading an excerpt from his new book

Good Reads Virtual Book Club discussion of Afterparties (Stockton-San Joaquin Public Library, includes an overview of each chapter of the book)

“Conversations with Authors” Panel discussion

Host: Nick Mitchell. Samantha So Lamb, Anthony’s sister. Alex Torres, Anthony’s partner and the moderator. Mira Jacob, novelist, memoirist, and So's former professor. Monica Sok, Stanford grad and friend of Anthony’s, who taught poetry to SE Asian refugee youth together with him. Bryan Washington, creative writer and multi-award winner whom Anthony admired.

Documentaries and films

Links to the films below will work for any 5Cs student with a Claremont Colleges library login.

Donut King documentary: Of the 5,000 independent donut shops in California, 90% are owned by Cambodian Americans. This compelling documentary explores why and tells the immigrant story (with a glazed twist!) of Ted Ngoy, a pioneer of Cambodian American entrepreneurship who sponsored hundreds of Cambodian refugee families and built a donut empire.

The Killing Fields film (trailer): 3-time Academy Award-winning film

More about the book from the '23-'24 first-year class president

All incoming students with a permanent U.S. address should have received a copy of the book in the mail. Students living abroad will receive access to a digital copy but can claim a physical book when they arrive on campus in August.

2023-2024 Orientation Book Committee

Colleen Rosenfeld, associate professor of English, committee chair

Malte Dold, assistant professor of economics

Thomas Flaherty, John P. and Magdalena R. Dexter Professor of Music

M. Bilal Nasir, assistant professor of Asian American studies

Sara K. Olson, associate professor of biology

Frederike von Schwerin-High, professor of German and Russian

Josh Eisenberg, associate dean of students/dean of campus life

Diane Nguyen '27

Mailing Address

333 N. College Way
Claremont, CA 91711

Get in touch

Connect

Give back to
Pomona

Support Pomona

Part of  The Claremont Colleges