Reading something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue
Some weeks back, I got a lovely surprise in the mail: a folded and gathered (f&g) advanced copy the book “Boo-la-la Witch Spa” (set for release on August 18) all the way from Studio Roxas in New York City.
“Boo-la-la Witch Spa” is written by Samantha Berger and illustrated by Filipino illustrator Isabel Roxas (we know her as Pepper!), who very kindly sent me this f&g. In “Boo-la-la Witch Spa, a harried young witch decides to get “the works” at a popular spa for witches.
Whenever I buy books, an important consideration is how good a book will look on my shelf, and I mean that in the literal sense: I like pretty books. This makes for a lot of impulsive shopping as I’m bound to pick up random books that catch my eye, but I’ve never regretted buying a book for its sheer physical beauty.
Such was the case when I had to buy some art supplies a couple of weeks ago, I had meant to pick up a watercolor pad and some new drawing pencils (in my attempts to wring out my creative juices) and I happened to wander to the art books section (erm, yeah, two floors down, but whatever…) and wham! I spotted a lovely, picture book called “Pierre the Maze Detective: The Search for the Stolen Maze Stone.
I was only a year old when the EDSA Revolution happened, and what I knew of it, I learned in history class: the Martial Law, the assassination of Ninoy Aquino, the snap elections, the military standoff, and the People Power.
While I have always been thankful to the generation that took to the streets to fight for the freedom that I enjoy as a Filipino today (traffic-geddon notwithstanding :s), I am glad that we have access to materials in commemoration of the EDSA revolution, giving us a chance to revisit this chapter of Philippine history, and read about the stories that should never be forgotten.
In honor of the EDSA revolution, here’s a roundup of EDSA-themed reading: “EDSA Uno: Narrative and Analysis with Notes on Dos & Tres” by Angela Stuart-Santiago, “The Untold Story of Imelda Marcos”/”Imelda Marcos: The Rise and Fall of One of the World’s Most Powerful Women” by Carmen Navarro Pedrosa; “Salingkit” by Cyan Abad-Jugo; “Isang Harding Papel” by Augie Rivera and Rommel Joson, and “EDSA” by Russell Molina and Sergio Bumatay III.
This Lemony Snicket phase started when his collaboration with illustrator Maira Kalman caught my eye: Why We Broke Up (not as Lemony Snicket but as Daniel Handler) and the picture book 13 Words. Then I remembered I also had a copy of the picture book, The Composer Is Dead, illustrated by one of my new favorites, Carson Ellis. And then I saw Lemony Snicket’s latest book at the bookstore and figured I might as well review these books all together, so I also got a copy of Who Could That Be At This Hour?
I thought I’d break this blogging fast with a nice roundup, featuring books by the prolific, award-winning author-illustrator David Macaulay!
I discovered David Macaulay back in college, when my illustration teacher showed us the Caldecott-winning Cathedral (which I read along with Pillars of the Earth), and I filed him away in my mental book wishlist. Years later, I lucked out on Black and White and Cathedral while trawling through bargain bins, and I’ve been fascinated by his work ever since.
Lately I’ve been really lucky, as Flipper friend (and hatter extraordinaire) Marie got me a couple David Macaulay books for our annual FFP Kris Kringle, and I’ve scored some more titles during my frequent bookstore raids, so I’ve got a little collection going. On top of the two titles already in my collection, I’ve now got: the storybooks Baaa, Shortcut, and Angelo, and the architecture books Mill, Pyramid, Unbuilding, and Mosque.
