Author: blooey@gmail.com

The Answers to Life’s Burning Questions

Whenever I go to Book Sale, I usually don’t have a book in mind, because I’ve formulated this theory: the amount of urgency applied in seeking out a specific title at Book Sale is directly proportional to the possibility that it (and multiple copies, too) will turn up when you no longer need it or already have a copy.

Of course, this also means that all my Book Sale purchases are impulse buys. What do I buy at Book Sale? Hmm, let’s see, here’s my laundry list (given that no book should set me back more than a hundred bucks, unless absolutely necessary):

– Books on my wishlist

– Book “upgrades” (e.g. doing a Blooey)

– Picture books for my collection

– Extremely cheap, wishlisted books for mooching (P20, tops)
– Random DIY book (e.g. crafts, painting, etc.) that I figure I’d get to work on someday

– (and finally) Interesting books that catch my eye.

The book I’m reviewing in this post is one from that last category.

The purple vintage cover of The Ladies’ Oracle by Cornelius Agrippa screamed for my attention the minute I spotted it, jumbled with board books in the children’s book bin. I also recognized the author’s name from a chocolate frog card in Harry Potter. It was P40, and in excellent condition and as I thumbed through it, I instantly knew it was a keeper.

I was looking for a book on my shelf that I could review, as my reading rate is dipping at the moment, and I’ve been drawing all night (studies due in two weeks) so I wanted to do a light post for today. I settled on this one because my officemates are currently on a fortune-telling kick, starting with cards, then with the magic 8-ball I brought to work, then the Kokology book I recently reviewed.

This compact hardbound volume from Bloomsbury is based on an original English edition published in 1857 (although it dates back to the 16th century) and is described on the cover as a book that “divines answers to those questions about life and love that inquisitive women have asked through the ages.”

The list of 100 questions is quite entertaining. Some samples: Shall I soon be courted? Shall I cease to be a virgin before I marry? Ought I to forsake the pleasures of the world? Have I to look forward to more sorrow than joy?

The divining part is more complicated. The basic guidelines include avoiding the use of the oracle on unlucky dates (there is a list given in the book) and not trying the same question twice in one day.

So given an auspicious day for fortune telling, you pick out a question from the list.
Today seems to be good; I think I’ll try it out.

#46. Shall I be happy in my enterprises?

The instructions tell me to close my eyes and place my finger on the table given. My index finger points to the box with a symbol of two triangles.

Then I consult the table to find out the page in which I can find the answer to my question. According to the table, my answer is on page 67.

On page 67, I scroll down the page for the symbol I chose, and there’s my answer:


Phew, that’s good to know. It’s also comforting to know I have something to blame when things go awry… hee hee, just kidding.

At the back of the book, there’s a short section of interesting charms and ceremonies — to see a future husband, to know what trade your husband will be, to know if the declarations on a love letter are sincere, etc. , appearing to have ties to wicca.

Here’s one for the road:

Take a candle, and go alone to the looking glass; eat an apple before it; and some say you should comb your hair all the time; the face of your husband will be seen in the glass, as if peeping over your shoulder.

Now that freaks me out so I’m not going to try it, but if anyone makes an attempt, do let me know how it goes :)

I think I’m going to have a lot of fun with this book…

***

My copy: hardcover, bought for P40 at Book Sale Cash and Carry
My rating: 5/5 stars

The return of The Penderwicks

After reading The Penderwicks, I had to move the sequel up my reading list, so I read it yesterday right after I finished the Noli.
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall (Book #56 for 2009) did not disappoint, and I think I liked it even more than the first book, even.

The Penderwicks are back with their delightful antics, this time right in their own backyard, on Gardam Street. The girls’ Aunt Claire comes over for a visit, with a letter from their mother (from several years ago, written on her deathbed), encouraging Mr. Penderwick to date so he doesn’t get lonely. The girls are fearful of getting a wicked stepmom, so they devise a “Save Daddy” plan, setting their father up with horrible women to discourage him from dating.

With that premise, you just know there are hilarious episodes that follow: matchmaking mayhem, Antonio’s Pizza vs. Cameron’s Hardware soccer matches, disastrous homework switching, The Sixth Grade Performance Night, Batty’s spy missions, and surprise, surprise: Rosalind’s turn at romance.

The characters are as charming as ever: Martin Penderwick still lapsing into Latin expressions, Batty not as shy on her home turf, Hound as dependable as ever and Skye as tempestuous as ever, and Jane still with her head in the clouds.

Rosalind however, will surprise readers in the sequel as she acts more her age: acting out because her dad is dating again, momentarily tiring of the big sister role, and confused about her feelings for Tommy. To me this normalcy comes as a pleasant surprise; I was afraid she had been growing up too soon.

The return of Churchie and Jeffrey are very much welcome, while new characters — the Geigers (Tommy is so cute!), new neighbors Iantha Rosenberg, baby Ben, and the cat Asimov — make this family romp more fun.

I like the sensitivity and warmth Birdsall puts into her books, and how the Penderwicks uphold family values in the 21st century.

Great for tween girls, the 8-12 bunch.

***
My copy: hardcover with dustjacket

My rating: 4.5/5 stars

Rereading the Noli

I’ve never read Noli Me Tangere (book #55 for 2009, book #10 for the Diversity Challenge : Filipino novel) outside of our class requirements in high school and in college, and so it was at the top of my list for this year; I really wanted to read it for leisure.

Upon the recommendation of my Flipper/BMP friend Czar, I chose the English translation by Ma. Soledad Lacson-Locsin (published by Bookmark) that I got for P100 at the Manila International Book Fair. English because I read faster in English than in Filipino, and this particular translation because I heard it was the most accurate. There is also a Penguin edition, although it’s translated by a Caucasian, so I’m not sure how it pans out, but it should be worth trying out as well.

Re-reading the Noli: perfect with a cup of “Tsokolate Eh”
Lacson-Locsin explains in her introduction:

“Although translations have to be in tandem with the semantics of the age in which they are read to be appreciated, my own personal view is that they should, as much as possible, capture much of the nuances and cadence of the period in which they had been written; even at the risk of sounding awkward or stilted…

It is also my view that the heart and mind need to understand and touch the past close to its pristine form, to sense the pulse of national heritage. If the Filipino cannot truly grasp his own past he may not value his present nor ascertain his future.”

It took me about a week to finish the novel; I had a lot on my plate for the past week and I fear for my reading ratio for the next three months because I’m working on a big illustration project and I can’t exactly read and draw at the same time (unfortunately), but I am determined to get through it, even if I have to read one chapter as a reward for each finished segment of the project.

Anyway, back to the Noli.

Since not all my readers are Filipino, I need to explain. The Noli Me Tangere is one of the two novels written by our national hero, Jose Rizal. A reading requirement for high schools in the Philippines, the novel was originally written in Spanish, and was a great influence on political thinking in the 19th and 20th century. It’s a bit difficult to summarize — you can read about it on Wikipedia.

I like the Noli’s coversational tone, especially in setting the scene for the novel. It starts out with the party at Capitan Tiago’s house, and the narrator, much like a tour guide, quips: “since no porters or servants ask for the invitation cards, let us go up.”

The narrator then goes on to describe the house in detail, from the interiors to the adornments of paintings and the religious statues, the magnificent spread, and even the crowd of partygoers. I love the witty descriptions and succinct observations about society:

“At the center is a long table… which seems to wink temptingly at the freeloaders with sweet promises; and to threaten the timid youth or the unsophisticated lass with two mortal hours in the company of stranger whose language and conversation tend to have a jargon all their own.” “Generally speaking, we mortals are like tortoises: we are valued for our shells.”

Idyll in an Azotea

After all these years, I still have my favorite chapter — Idyll in an Azotea.

Chapter 7, which is forever engrained in my memory as “Pag-uulayaw sa Azotea” (that sounds more romantic!), is, to this day, one of the most romantic pieces I have ever read in print, either in English or Filipino. I remember that day we read it in class, and the classroom resounded with a chorus of schoolgirl sighs, each of us imagining ourselves as Maria Clara in this jesting banter of young lovers, superimposing an image of the crush for the moment against the image of Crisostomo Ibarra. Reading it again, nearly a decade later, I am no less moved.

The chapter captures young love so accurately, from Maria Clara’s heartpounding anticipation of Ibarra’s arrival:

“Each sound from the street, each carriage that passes by causes the maiden’s bosom to throb, and makes her tremble. Ah! Now she wishes she were back in her quiet and peaceful convent among her friends. There she would be able to see him without trembling, without feeling disturbed. But, was he not your childhood friend; did you not play many games together, and even quarrel sometimes? If you who read this have loved, you will understand; if not, it is useless for me to tell you; the profane cannot comprehend these mysteries.”

The pretense of focusing elsewhere other than the object of affection upon the moment of encounter:

“Capitan Tiago and Ibarra were talking animatedly when Tia Isabel appeared, practically dragging forward her niece who was looking everywhere in the room except those at present. What were those two souls saying who were communicating in the language of the eyes, more perfectly than with the lips, a language given by the soul so that sound does not disturb the ecstasy of feeling? In those moments, when the thoughts of two happy beings are blended into one through the eyes, the word is gross, slow and weak; it is like the rude and dull sound of thunder, before the blinding flash and speed of lightning; it expresses an already known feeling, an idea already understood; and if we make use of it, it is because of the heart’s ambition, which dominates all of one’s being, and which overflows with happiness, wishing that all of the human organism with all its faculties, physical and psychic, would manifest the symphony of happiness intoned by the spirit. To a query of love by a glance, brilliant or veiled, the word has no answer: only the smile, the kiss, or the sigh.”

And the fervent reassurance and renewal of undying love:

Ibarra: Can I forget you? Would I be faithless to a vow, a sacred vow?… I took hold of your hand and that of my dead mother, I swore to love you, to make you happy no matter what fate Heaven had in store for me; and this oath I have
never regretted. Now I am renewing it. Can I forgmaet you? Your memory has always kept me company; it has saved me from dangers along the way; it has been my comfort in the solitude of my soul in foreign countries; your memory has negated the effect of the European lotus of forgetfulness, which effaces from the remembrance of many of our countrymen the hopes and the sorrows of the Motherland.

Maria Clara: I have not travelled as you have, nor do I know of a town other than your own, Manila and Antipolo. But since I bade you farewell and entered the convent I have always recalled and not forgotten you, even if my confessor commanded me to do so, imposing many penances…

And then they reveal their precious mementos of each other, Ibarra a bunch of withered aromatic sage leaves that she gathered for him, kept inside his wallet, and Maria Clara, his farewell letter, encased in a satin pouch kept on her bosom (!).

Sigh.

On Sisa

Sisa , a young woman who is a victim of her situation, a long-suffering wife and a loving mother, is one of the saddest characters I have ever encountered.

Even in the chapter in which she is introduced, before she becomes demented, you can already see how she has been reduced to a shell of a person:

“Sisa covered the scanty coals with ashes so as not to extinguish them completely, the same way a man covers up the feelings of his soul– covers them with the ashes of life which are called indifference, so that they are not extinguished by the quotidian treatment of our fellowmen.”

And with the trauma she experiences as the novel unfolds, you really wouldn’t be surprised that she loses her marbles.

On revolution

I promised myself this was going to be a leisurely reading, but it’s hard to separate the novel from its political underpinnings, given the context in which it was written.

I do not have the authority or qualifications to launch into a discourse of the political statements presented by Noli Me Tangere, so I’ll just take a few quotes that struck me, and you can draw your own conclusions:

P.226, Elias: “Woe unto them who are engaged in deception and work in darkness, believing that all are asleep! When the light of day illuminates the monster of the shadows, the terrible reaction will come: so much strength bottled up over centuries; so much venom distilled drop by drop; so much lament suppressed will come out and explode…”

p.231, Pilosopo Tasyo: “If that should happen, if the enterprise fails, what will console you is the thought of having done your part. And even thus, something would be gained: lay the first stone, sow; after the storm is unleashed, some grain of wheat will perhaps germinate, survive the catastrophe, save from destruction the species which would later serve as seed for the sons of the dead sower.”

p. 298, Elias: “In life, it is not the criminals who arouse the hatred of others, but men who are honest.”

p.434, Elias: “Criminals, or future criminals — but why are they such? Because their peace has been broken, their happiness wrenched from them; they have been wounded in their most cherished affections. When they asked justice for protection, they became convinced that they can expect it only from themselves. But you are mistaken, Sir, if you think criminals only ask for it. Go from town to town, from house to house, listen to the silent sighs of families; you will be convinced that the evils the Civil Guard correct are the same, if not less than the evils they continually cause…”

Drawing to the close

I finally finished the book yesterday morning, and found it so sad I cried through the last five chapters, from “Wedding Plans for Maria Clara” right down to the epilogue — crying for the love of Maria Clara and Crisostomo, crying for Sisa’s death in her son’s arms and Basilio’s loss of innocence, and crying for the turmoil yet to come in the 2nd novel, El Filibusterismo, which I have also lined up for this year.

The Noli was even better than I remembered it, especially reading it as a work of fiction and outside of academic requirement. Hopefully this blog entry gets more people to read (or re-read) this Filipino classic.

***
My copy: paperback copy from Bookmark, crying out to be upgraded (hay, someday…)

My rating: 5/5 stars

Drawing on endpapers

One of the factoids I listed in the previous post inspired this entry, because I dug up a bunch of photos that had me cracking up last night.

I mentioned that I used to think endpapers and flyleaves were blank so that you could draw on them, and so I did.

Here are some drawings from when I was 4 or 5 years old, in an old encyclopedia set that my mom gave away a couple of years ago.

Animal drawings. I see a bird on the lower right and what looks like a cat on the upper right but I don’t know what the bug-eyed, big-eared critters are. I’m guessing they’re mice? Ooh, and I think it’s sort of a maze. They’re labeled A, B, C, D and there are crisscrossing lines, although does that mean the cat and bird are racing to get the biggest mouse?

Check out the club hands and the curly feet. I’ve always hated drawing hands and feet. But I like the striped tie and the lacy cropped pants.

I think this is an attempt to draw angels; I’ve drawn wings instead of hands. And I’ve got some strange numbers up on top.

What appears to be a cat, some floating heads and a guy presenting flowers to his lady love. They look like clowns.

This time in ballpoint pen. I think this is a princess? Hahaha, club hands again, and a giraffey neck. But she’s wearing high-heeled boots!

And here are some more floating heads that I’ve put random names on.

I don’t know where my mom donated the books to, but I hope someone keeps them and I’ll be able to see these drawings again one day.

100.

Ever since I realized this was going to be my 100th post, I’ve had the hardest time composing an entry, since I don’t have a review yet because I’m still halfway through the book I’m reading (Noli Me Tangere by Jose Rizal).

Anyway, after a day or two of just staring at the computer screen, I realized I might as well plunge in and just write… so here goes:

Sumthinblue’s 100 random book quirks
(or, a peek inside the crazy mind of a biblioholic)

100. I learned to read at three years old.

99. I have no scars from childhood rough and tumble because I preferred reading to playing.

98. I used to think endpapers / flyleaves were blank so you could draw on them.

97. When I was about five, I got lost at SM North EDSA (then the biggest mall) because I wandered off inside a book store.

96. The first book I bought with my own money was Sweet Valley Kids #6, Lila’s Secret

95. I got my first pair of glasses in 2nd year high school, when I couldn’t read the subtitles off Il Postino, which we watched for Lit Class. I started out at +0.75/1.00 grade.

94. I am currently wearing +2.50 contacts.

93. I like books on trivia and useless information.

92. I am a big Harry Potter fan and I have a collection of international editions of the series, numbering nearly 80 books now.

91. My cousin and I once threw a birthday party in honor of Harry Potter.

90. I cannot read a book that has not yet been covered in plastic.

89. When I borrow books I usually return them already covered in plastic, except when I know the owner prefers books naked.

88. I abhor mass market paperbacks and I love hardbacks!

87. I visit the bargain bookstore at least twice a week.

86. I don’t buy books at full price if I can help it.

85. I have loyalty cards to National Book Store and Powerbooks. My next target is a Fully Booked loyalty/discount card but it’s so expensive (P15,000 purchase in 1 year, or P700 outright – I am thinking of the number of books I can buy with that money)!

84. Romance novels are my guilty pleasure.

83. I have only recently learned to read several books at the same time, I used to strictly stick to one book from start to finish before I pick up another one.

82. I currently have nearly 300 books in my to-be-read pile.

81. I prefer female authors to male authors, although I read a fair amount of both.

80. I am not a Twilight fan and no amount of persuasion can make me change my stand on the series.

79. My favorite series are Harry Potter, Cirque du Freak, The Bartimaeus Trilogy, and The Thursday Next series

78. I read all sorts of books, except self help/inspirational, drama, and political novels. I also don’t like cutesy talking animals, so I am very picky about books with animal characters. Give me a grisly murder anytime.

77. I remove price stickers using WD-40, but only for glossy finishes (otherwise the oil seeps through). Sometimes sticky-taping the price sticker works too.

76. I don’t dog-ear. If I don’t have a bookmark, I’ll use a receipt, a gum wrapper, tissue, or anything I can insert inside a book. Dog ears break the fibers of the paper and one day, the dog-ear will fall off.

75. I always lose bookmarks so I dare not buy any expensive ones. Once I leave a bookmark inside the book, I tend to forget about it until the next reading.

74. I like reading in cars and other modes of transportation, I’ve gotten so used to it that the movement doesn’t bother me.

73. I also like to read while eating – one hand for the food, one hand to hold the book up.

72. At any given time there are three to four books on my bed – under the pillow, tangled in the sheets, etc. I like my bedtime reading, especially in the dark with my Lumos book light.

71. There was one mystery series I liked more than Nancy Drew – The Three Investigators! I loved Jupe, Pete, and Bob’s team up, and the sleuthing gadgets they created.

70. Aside from my work as a PR writer, I moonlight as a newspaper contributor and a children’s book illustrator.

69. I get disturbed by deckle-edge books, although I don’t really have much choice if the book comes in rough cut. More edges for dust to sit on…

68. I frequent bookstores to find new titles to mooch. Even at Book Sale, when the book is over P100 and I don’t have to have the book, I end up adding it to my BookMooch wishlist.

68. My books usually have a bookplate sticker and my name handwritten on the flyleaf.

67. I have a fluffy pink duster on my bookshelf.

66. I have a separate bookshelf for to-be-read books, which overflows into several stacks on my workdesk, taking it over completely.

65. I “upgrade” mass market paperbacks into trade paperbacks, and trade paperbacks into hardcovers, and as you may know by now, my book club friends call it “doing a Blooey”

64. Vlad Tepes from the book The Historian scares the hell out of me.

63. Once, at Book Sale – Cash and Carry, one of the clerks came up to me and asked if I was the illustrator of Alamat ng Atis, causing me to blush beet red.

62. Once I forged all the signatures from the letters inside the Harry Potter books, and then invented a few more… (crazy!)

61. I get sad when I walk out of a book store without buying anything.

60. In our sixth grade production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, I starred as Snout the tinker, who presents the Wall in the play Pyramus and Thisbe.

59. I find Neil Gaiman to be an acquired taste, which I’m acquiring very slowly.

58. I was thoroughly depressed by Haruki Murakami’s Norwegian Wood.

57. I once snuck out a book from my grade school library- Nothing’s Fair in the Fifth Grade by Barthe De Clements.

56. I stopped reading picture books after the first grade because I thought they were babyish and I wanted to read “grown up” books. Now I’m making up for it, tee hee hee.

55. In high school I was addicted to movie tie-ins and read every single movie tie-in I could find in the library. Today, I steer clear of movie covers.

54. In college I took a production design class and I had to create a machette (a miniature stage) for Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

53. I snuck reading Harlequin romances in high school.

52. On the launch of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, I won a hardbound boxed set of Harry Potter books because I made a diorama of Harry battling the Hungarian Horntail in the first task.

51. I am trying to complete my Tintin comics. I think I’m about 2/3 there.

50. The person I’ve mooched the most books from is wired_lain, who supplies me with all the books I could possibly want (and more!) from Japan.

49. When on a trip, I usually take books I have trouble starting so that I’ll be forced to read them.

48. I rarely like movie adaptations of books.

47. I prefer to have read the book before seeing the movie.

46. I got over my chick lit phase because I kept getting disappointed by random chick lit titles. Today I stick to Sophie Kinsella, Emily Giffin and Meg Cabot.

45. I hate that there are so many skanky books for young girls.

44. I have loads of art how-to books but I’ve never had the time to practice them. Ditto computer/ graphic design books.

43. I want a cue cat scanner.

42. I am one book away from completing the 2nd Griffin and Sabine Trilogy: Alexandria remains elusive.

41. I have a signed copy of Jasper Fforde’s Something Rotten and Meg Cabot’s Queen of Babble in the Big City, and Lynne Reid Banks’ The Secret of the Indian.

40. I like wordless picture books!

39. I have the following boxed sets: The Next Set by Jasper Fforde; Harry Potter; Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell (separate books for Part I, II, and III); The Spiderwick Chronicles; and The Lord of the Rings (mass market paperback).

38. I have a hardbound, anniversary edition of The Little Prince (in clothbound slipcase) that I got for P140 at the Book Sale warehouse.

37. I have been inside the Book Sale warehouse.

36. I love it when P5, P10, P15 and P20 books at Book Sale turn out to be great reads.

35. My mom used to cover all my school books with fancy wrapping paper and plastic cover.

34. My favorite Book Sale branch is in Makati Cinema Square.

33. For the past four years, I have been to the Manila International Book Fair every day of its 5-day run.

32. The most I’ve spent for books all in one go is P4500 (nearly $100).

31. My favorite Harry Potter character is Severus Snape.

30. My cousin Dianne and I had “In Snape We Trust” shirts made before book 7 was out.

29. My favorite TV character as a kid was Kapitan Basa on Batibot.

28. I like copying down quotes from books I like.

27. Judy Blume got me through adolescence.

26. I get paranoid when I enter a book store and there are books in my bag, I’m always afraid that my books will set off the scanner alarms, although it has never stopped me from going
in.

25. The first classic I read was Heidi.

24. When I was in third grade, I joined an art workshop conducted by Jose Aruego and decided I wanted to “draw books.”

23. I like my white space, I get disturbed when books have narrow margins and tight leading.

22. The earliest memories I have of books is a ladybird book of She-ra (Was a big She-ra fan), a board book of The Wolf and Seven Kids, the type that uses puppet illustrations, and a ladybird book of Opposites

21. I feel bad if I spend more than P100 on a book from Book Sale
.

20. Thickness is not an issue for me, if it’s compelling enough, I can read it. But no matter how thin the book is, if it bores me, I’ll fall asleep while reading it.

19. I get freaked out by fantasy novels that have maps and unpronounceable names.

18. When I am book shopping or attending a book club event, I always bring a recyclable bag because I know I’ll get loaded down with books.

17. I like hunting down books for other people.

16. I get extreme satisfaction when I find a bargain copy or mooch a book that would have set me back for so much more money if I’d bought it full price.

15. My officemates often pore through my desk when I have books that come in the mail.

14. I have read until book 4 of the Charlie Bone series (and I have Books 5 and 6) but it’s so vague that until now I still don’t get the point of the series.

13. When covering my books, I like using plastic cover that’s at least gauge 3. I hate thin plastic cover.

12. I’m annoyed that there are no ready-made dust jackets and book repair supplies available in the Philippines.

11. When I was in kindergarten I played the role of Henny Penny in the school play. All I remember is running around, screaming “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!”

10. I collect Caldecott Medal and Caldecott Honor books.

9. I only loan books to people that I trust will return them in their original condition.

8. I get thirsty when I shop for books, I don’t know why.

7. I currently have 1113 books on my Shelfari shelf.

6. The books that have wrung buckets of tears out of me are: The Time Traveler’s Wife; Walk Two Moons, The Book Thief, Tiger Eyes, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

5. When we were young, my cousin Dianne and I made our own books and branded them “Twinklelite.”

4. In high school, I was on TV to talk about my favorite book- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

3. I discovered the book “Love You Forever” in an episode of Friends.

2. I like getting people to read the books I enjoyed so I can have someone to discuss them with.

1. I am averaging 18 books a month so far in my book challenge.