Twisted, Jessica Zafra, 1995
- Philippines, #23
- Borrowed from SF public library
- Read August 2018
- Rating: 3/5
- Recommended for: A momentary distraction from your overwhelming existential dread
Twisted, Jessica Zafra, 1995
When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, 1994
Dogeaters, Jessica Hagedorn, 1990
I haven’t posted a reading update in a while because I haven’t been reading that much. I’ve mostly been very slowly plugging away at Four Reigns this week (ok, that’s not entirely true. I’ve MOSTLY been grudge-reading P.D. James novels on my kindle in the middle of the night while waiting for my baby to fall back asleep, but that is beyond the scope of this particular reading project). It’s pleasant reading but not exactly a page-turner; mostly a nostalgic depiction of a bygone era.
Continue readingWhat the Hell for You Left Your Heart in San Francisco, Bienvenido N. Santos, 1987
There is an overwhelming preoccupation with food in this book. Part of this is emblematic of the central characters’ struggle and drive to survive: as refugees, the food they bring and gather to see them through their flight is crucial, as is the prospect of what they will grow and eat when they finally arrive. José’s repeated assertions that “they were Ilokanos—they would not starve anywhere” and “Ilokanos can eat what other people cannot,” are both a descriptive and symbolic. The industrious and persevering Ilocano characters of the book are set in contrast with the overbearing but sloppy Spanish rulers who make their lives so miserable and who, ironically, dismiss all “indios” (native Filipinos) as lazy and stupid. “As for patience and industry,” José writes, “they were Ilokanos born to these virtues—it was in their blood, in the very air they breathed.” Istak and his family are resourceful and resilient, overcoming hardship and scarcity to carve a new life for themselves.
Dusk, F. Sionil Jose, 1984
The Woman Who Had Two Navels, and Tales of the Tropical Gothic, Nick Joaquin, 2017
Philippine Food and Life, Gilda Cordero-Fernando, 1992
I had a very long travel day this week, so I got most of my reading done while stuck on a plane holding a sleeping or nursing baby. Jet lag is way more brutal when there are two little (also jet-lagged) people in your house and no one seems to want to sleep at the same time, so I got very little done the rest of the week. Continue reading