Last Saturday, the Flippers met up again for our monthly book discussion, this time moderated by Raissa and Joel on the theme of “Art in Fiction.”
It’s a theme I personally love — ever since I read Tracy Chevalier’s Girl with a Pearl Earring around five years ago, I was hooked on this subgenre, and I still read one every so often.
Our afternoon was packed for this discussion, we had a drawing session, a discussion, and a museum tour!
I’m rarely absent for the Flips Flipping Pages monthly book discussions (I think I’ve only missed three so far), and the April book discussion on The Hunger Gameswas one of those I didn’t want to miss. You all know I’m a big fan of Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games series, and I’m one of the thousands of fans eagerly waiting for the final installment, Mockingjay, coming out on August 24.
Peter was assigned to moderate this month, and he did an A-1 job, lining up a paintball tournament a la Hunger Games, which, from the looks of it (check out the cover photo collage), was a highly exciting affair, where Marie’s team triumphed.
The discussion was already well under way by the time I got to R.O.X (Recreational Outdoor eXchange) on Bonifacio High Street, Asia’s biggest outdoor superstore which proved to be a fitting venue for our discussion — HG fans, think of it as your ultimate cornucopia! — and we were glad they very kindly accommodated us for the discussion.
U.S. Embassy’s Commercial Counselor Patrick Wall, National Book Store general manager Socorro Ramos and U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Leslie A. Bassett check out the wide selection of American literature on display.
From May 1 to 8, selected branches of National Bookstore will hold an American Book Fair, mounted in partnership with the U.S. Embassy – Commercial Service to introduce new American titles to the local market.
“The book fair focuses on small and independent American publishers without local representation, that have never been exposed to the Philippine market,” states Xandra Ramos of National Book Store. “We are showcasing choice titles from 24 American publishers so they can try and test the market, and we plan to reorder the titles that do well at the fair.”
Over a hundred titles are showcased at the American Book Fair, including children’s books, health books, work books, reference books, biographies and memoirs, religion and spirituality, world events, business books, and fiction. Among the titles to be found at the fair are: Graphic Biography: Barack Obama (Saddleback Publishing); Democracy is a Good Thing (Brookings Institution Press); Balikbayan: A Filipino Homecoming (Bess Press); children’s book My Senses: Mis Sentidos (Me+Mi Publishing, Inc.), and the Essential Skills series (Teacher Created Resources).
National Book Store showcases the American Book Fair at eight branches, including Trinoma, Glorietta 5, SM Mall of Asia, Superbranch-Cubao, Power Plant Mall, Quezon Avenue and Shangri-la Plaza Mall until May 8, 2010.
Just a short plug about a fundraising project initiated by Ex-Libris Philippines, a SEC-certified, non-stock, non-profit organization of book enthusiasts. Concert for a Cause is Ex-Libris’ 3rd fundraising project; their first two fundraisers have sent deserving but financially challenged students to school at the University of the Philippines, Diliman.
Concert for a Cause features performances by soprano Gabriela Francisco (BM Voice Summa cum laude and Valedictory Address Speaker during the UP Centennial Commencement Exercises 2008), her twin sister Tata Francisco, together with faculty, alumni and gifted students of the UP College of Music. All funds to be raised will go to the Scholarship Project. The concert will be on May 21, 2010, Friday, 6 p.m. at the UP College of Music, Nicanor Abelardo Hall.
Tickets are at Php 300.00 each. For tickets, please contact Tata Francisco at 0920-9470861, or Gabi Francisco at 0920-9470835. You can also email them at teachertata[at]gmail[dot]com, or gabitwin[at]gmail[dot]com.
I spent most of last week in Davao City, toting along my review copy of Miguel Syjuco’s Ilustrado, winner of the 2008 Man Asian Literary Prize and the Palanca Award. It’s a metafictional novel that pieces together the life of Filipino writer-in-exile Crispin Salvador as his student, Miguel weaves together fragments of Salvador’s body of work, personal interviews, blog entries, newspaper clippings, and many other sources as he investigates his teacher’s mysterious death.
I spent most of my spare time engrossed in the novel — at the airport, on flights, and before hitting the sack at the hotel room — and I was looking forward to coming back to Manila to attend the press conference and launch at National Book Store.
The review will have to wait; I just finished the novel and I’m reviewing it for Manila Bulletin, so here’s a recap of the launch, the first release of Ilustrado anywhere in the world!
