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Around the World in 2000 Books

(give or take a few)

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Short Stories

The Woman Who Had Two Navels: A very inaccurate synopsis

January 21, 2020January 27, 2020 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ Leave a comment

The Woman Who Had Two Navels, and Tales of the Tropical Gothic, Nick Joaquin, 2017

  • Philippines, #14
  • Paperback, $13.98 from Amazon
  • Read January 2018
  • Rating: 4.5/5

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Philippine Short Stories 1925-1940

November 13, 2019November 13, 2019 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 2 Comments

Philippine Short Stories 1925-1940, Leopoldo Y. Yabes, ed., 1975

  • Philippines, #8
  • Borrowed from SF public library
  • Read December 2017
  • Rating: 4/5
  • Recommended for: completists

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Cuentos Filipinos: Colonialism and condescension

July 30, 2019July 31, 2019 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ Leave a comment

Cuentos Filipinos, Jose Montero y Vidal, 1883, translated by Renan Prado

  • Philippines, #5
  • Borrowed from SF public library
  • Read October 2017
  • Rating: 2/5
  • Recommended for: Miss Eleanor Lavish

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Lali: Looking Back

December 31, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 2 Comments

Lali: A Pacific Anthology, ed. Albert Wendt, 1980

  • Cook Islands, #5; Tonga, #2; Samoa, #2; Niue, #1; Fiji, #1; Vanuatu, #1; Solomon Islands, #1; Papua New Guinea, #7; Kiribati, #2
  • £13.84 from Amazon.co.uk
  • Read: September 2015-December 2016
  • Rating: 3/5
  • Recommended for: Moana groupies

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Raetemaot: not everyone is a writer

July 12, 2017July 11, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 1 Comment

Raetemaot: Creative Writing from Solomon Islands, Julian Maka’a, ed.

  • Solomon Islands, #6
  • Paperback, $20 from Alibris.com (I kind of can’t believe I paid $20 for this)
  • Read September 2016
  • Rating: 2/5
  • Recommended for: trainee editors after a rousing game of spot-the-professional-writer

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Suremada: Another bewildering reading experience from the Solomon Islands

July 7, 2017July 29, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 1 Comment

Suremada: Faces from a Solomon Island Village, Rexford Orotaloa, 1989

  • Solomon Islands, #5
  • $20, alibris.com
  • Read August 2016
  • Rating: 1.5/5
  • Opening line: Anaibolafafawa was the village Big Man.
  • Recommended for: Rambling internet commenters

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Vanuatu: Substance without style

June 30, 2017July 29, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 2 Comments

Black Stone, Grace Mera Molisa, 1983

The Story of the Eel, Elder Mark of Emil Potun, 2004

  • Vanuatu, #2 & #3
  • Black Stone: skimmed on Google Books; Story of the Eel: read online through JSTOR
  • Read August, 2016
  • Opening line (Black Stone): Ageless Vatu/ primeval source/ of creative forces/ ad infinitum
  • Opening line (Story of the Eel): There was once an old man and an old woman.

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The Kanak Apple Season

June 12, 2017June 11, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 2 Comments

The Kanak Apple Season: Selected Short Fiction of Déwé Gorodé, Déwé Gorodé, translated and edited by Peter Brown, 2004

  • New Caledonia, #3
  • Borrowed from SF public library
  • Read: February 2016
  • Rating: 3.5/5
  • Recommended for: studious rabble-rousers

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The Challenge: Not Accepted

January 5, 2017January 4, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 2 Comments

The Challenge, Ruperake Petaia, 2011

  • Samoa, #5
  • Kindle, (a waste of) $4.99 from amazon.com
  • Read January 2016
  • Rating: 1/5
  • Recommended for: Ruperake Petaia (because I can’t imagine anyone aside from the author enjoying this particular piece of literature)

Well, that’s half an hour of my life I’m never going to get back.

 

 

Tales of the Tikongs: What’s the point of all this, anyway?

July 28, 2016December 31, 2017 ~ Kelly Dunagan ~ 3 Comments

Tales of the Tikongs, Epeli Hau’ofa, 1988

  • Tonga, #4
  • Borrowed from SF library
  • Read November 2015
  • Rating: 3/5
  • Recommended for: Mack and the boys

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It’s been a long time since I wrote a blog post. Frankly it’s been a while since I read anything that wasn’t by NK Jemisin or Stephen King. But I still have all these books from Southeast Asia that I’ve read and haven’t written about, so I jumped back in with quick takes on a whole bunch of books from the Philippines, including this fantastic buddy-cop serial killer mystery starring two Jesuit priests.
Folsom Street Fair, 2015
#tbt to my last blog post of 2019: America Is in the Heart, by Carlos Bulosan
Drawings from today’s blog post, Philippine Food and Life by Gilda Cordero-Fernando. Link in profile.
Recent read: Sightseeing by Rattawut Lapcharoensap
Excited about these recent library checkouts! Now to find a couple of new recipes that won’t scare a picky seafood-averse spouse or a preschooler who is highly suspicious of all sauces, soups, and stews...

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Top Posts & Pages

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  • Tales of the Tikongs: What's the point of all this, anyway?
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  • The Woman Who Had Two Navels: A very inaccurate synopsis
    The Woman Who Had Two Navels: A very inaccurate synopsis
  • The Complete List
    The Complete List
  • Legends, Traditions, and Tales of Nauru
    Legends, Traditions, and Tales of Nauru

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