Month: March 2014

Flowers for Algernon

“Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes has been in my to-be-read pile for some time now, and it came so highly recommended by my book club friends Peter and Orly, so I decided to bump it up last January.

Originally a Hugo award-winning short story written in 1958, “Flowers for Algernon” was expanded into a full length novel, which subsequently won the Nebula award in 1966. The story is told from the point of view of Charlie Gordon, a mentally-challenged man who becomes the subject of a study, causing his IQ to dramatically increase after he undergoes brain surgery.

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Books for Bedtime

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We have a new kitten in the house and she’s been driving us crazy with her late night activity, when her energy peaks after snoozing away most of the day. I’ve been staying up with her until she tires herself out and goes to sleep, because otherwise she cries all night (and goes wandering, magically apparating outside of her locked cage), and then we ALL don’t get any sleep.

Two books have been keeping me company while trying to put Molly (as in Molly Hooper :D) to sleep: Margaret Wise Brown’s “Goodnight Songs” featuring various award-winning picture book illustrators, and Tahanan Book’s “Antukin: Philippine Folk Songs and Lullabies” selected by Felicidad A. Prudente, Ph.D. with illustrations by Joanne de Leon.

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Ang Ikaklit sa Aming Hardin

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Last week, I received a review copy of the children’s book, “Ang Ikaklit Sa Aming Hardin” / “Ikaklit in Our Garden” for the blog tour that’s ongoing this week.

Published in 2012 by Twamkittens, “Ang Ikaklit Sa Aming Hardin” by Bernadette Villanueva Neri (English translation by Jennifer del Rosario-Malonzo) and illustrated by CJ de Silva (layout by Jennifer Padilla-Quintos) won the first prize in the 2006 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature in the short story for children category.

In the book, a young girl grows up in a family with two mothers and a shared love for gardening. When she enters school for the first time, she gets teased and taunted by her classmates over her unconventional family setup, and she struggles to come to terms with how others perceive the only family she has known.

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