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xvii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book would not have been possible without the people who took time out of their day to sit down with us and talk about their jobs. Our first debt of gratitude, then, is to all the people we interviewed between 2010 and 2011. Next, I’d like to thank all the students of EAP Vietnam and the UCHANU class. Whether they participated directly as contributors or indirectly through their enthusiasm and inspiration over the years, they’re all a part of this project. Special thanks go to the irrepressible Ali Wong, a participant in that first and epic EAP semester, who gave me her dog-eared copy of Gig and unknowingly started the ball rolling back in 2002. I also have to thank everyone at the UC EAP offices who placed such trust in me and provided me with unfailing support over the years: especially Peter, Mary, Nicole, Joyce, Eva, Doris, Inés, Amy, and May. I’m also indebted to our wonderful collaborators at Hanoi University, particularly Trương Văn Khôi, Hoàng Hương Giang, and Hoàng Gia Thư. And I really cannot thank enough my superb program coordinators, Phạm Thị Phương Liên and Nguyễn Thu Trang, and my student, colleague, and brother Alex-Thái Đình Võ. Finally, I’d like to dedicate this book to the millions of working women and men of Vietnam who get out of bed in the morning — or work through the night — to make a living for themselves and their families. Without them and the millions of different jobs they do, the crazy beautiful place that is Vietnam would not be possible. ...

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