caption birth_name birth_place imagesize nationality ethnicity birth_date genre image article_title name born
bryan thao worra 2008 thao somnouk silosoth vientiane , laos 180px united states laotian american 01 january 1973 poetry , short story , playwright bryan thao worra.jpg bryan thao worra
 bryan thao worra vientiane laos
bryan thao worra

bryan thao worra -lrb- born january 1 , 1973 -rrb- is a laotian american writer .
his books include `` on the other side of the eye '' , `` touching detonations '' , `` winter ink '' , `` barrow '' and `` the tuk tuk diaries : my dinner with cluster bombs '' .
he is the first laotian american to receive a fellowship in literature from the united states government 's national endowment for the arts .
he received the asian pacific leadership award from the state council on asian pacific minnesotans for leadership in the arts in 2009 .
he received the science fiction poetry association elgin award for book of the year in 2014 .
he was selected as a cultural olympian representing laos during the 2012 london summer olympics .
