Writer Profile: Za Wa Na
Za Wa Na (real name U Thein) was born 1911. One of Myanmars earliest comedic and satirical writers, he made his name at the age of 24 with the publication of College Student a semi-fictional account of a student and his experiences at college. …
The work was so successful it spawned a sequel from the point of a female student and written by the grand dame of Burmese literature, Daw Khin Myo Chit. Za Wa Na later directed his wit at the British colonial administration before turning his talents to childrens literature, creating the one of the most beloved childrens books in Myanmar, Dad Will Tell The Story in 1966. He passed away in 1983.
This profile is an excerpt taken and reproduced with the kind permission of the editors from the Burmese language A to Z of Burmese writers, Volume 1, 2016, and co-translated into English with Dennis Htoo.