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Twisted Series #3
Planet of the Twisted
Generation X icon Zafra continues her quest for world domination as she rants, complains, reminisces, and comments on anything and everything under the sun with her usual acerbic humor.
- GenresNonfictionEssaysHumor
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
2 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
About the author
Jessica Zafra
29 books331 followersJessica Zafra (born 1965) is a fiction writer, columnist, editor, publisher and former television and radio show host. She is known for her sharp and witty writing style. Her most popular books are the Twisted series, a collection of her essays as a columnist for newspaper Today (now Manila Standard Today), as well as from her time as editor and publisher of the magazine Flip. She currently writes a weekly column for The Philippine Star which is called, Emotional Weather Report. She resides in Metro Manila, Philippines, where she is working on her first novel. She also managed the Eraserheads during the 90's.
Her work often are about current events (both Philippine and international), tennis, movies, music, cats, books, technology and her personal life. Her work has been the subject of academic study. The main ingredient to her work is often fun cynicism and irony.
Find out more about her here.
Her work often are about current events (both Philippine and international), tennis, movies, music, cats, books, technology and her personal life. Her work has been the subject of academic study. The main ingredient to her work is often fun cynicism and irony.
Find out more about her here.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 9, 2015
Disclaimer: I sincerely apologize for any damage (not intended) that I have caused (may it be technical or personal) in trying to write something about the riveting article collections in Planet of the Twisted of Jessica Zafra.
The Philistine Foreskin Coin Purse – I like how Jessica discussed Filipino fanaticisms. Being a true Pinoy, she is among those credible people to write and give justice on this subject with eloquence and a bit of sarcasm. Agimats, faith healers and the likes, name it, she has it.
Afterlife Therapy – In this article, Jessica will remind us that death is inevitable and it is something that we cannot undo. And because of this, she encourages us with a punch in the gut that we should live our life to the fullest. “Life is good. You should get one.” Fair enough.
Tales from the Sisters Grim – Even before Dreamworks, Disney and other film producing outfits started to tweak and make fairy tale stories more interesting and a little bit action packed, Jessica is already clamoring for the hidden truths in these bedtime stories. In this article, Jessica has already her own accounts of fairy tale stories where villains teach us more important and sensible lessons in life than those heroines who just waited for a one particular perfect man (Prince Charming) to come. She also unlocks the hidden messages behind these stories.
“Cinderella’s publicists promoted her as a docile, submissive female rescued from a life of hard labor by her husband. This wimpy image was exactly what the male dominated society required. It sent the message to women everywhere that quiet submission was rewarded and that they were nothing without a man.”
Moses Supposes, Mother Supposes – Whether they are in stone tablets or just verbal commandments, our mothers have a lot of them and we have our whole lives to be reminded of all these orders, every single minute of our life. I cannot agree more with Jessica in this article. It is hilarious and very entertaining.
A Slice of Dread – Jessica retold her experiences and dread she had when she was young, during Lenten season. She also incorporated this to a far greater fear to horrendous scalawags roaming in luxury around town.
Profile of a Wannabe - “In this twisted world a person who takes pride in his looks, he loses them, plunges into self-loathing; a person who lives off his looks, then loses them just might be driven to kill.”
Aroint thee, Kate Moss – This is one of the articles I like the most. Aside from being funny and hilarious it speaks so much of the truth. I share the same sentiments with Jessica when it comes to food and dieting. Just like her, (I guess), I am not a fan of dieting. I enjoyed eating extra rice and I am a hard core fan of second servings. However, with all the media influences around us, we are constantly reminded that being beautiful means starving and hurting yourself. Well, fuck that.
Jessica's intellectual discourse about life,food and dieting is just riveting. Now, I take pride in every edges and curves in my body.
Immanuel Cant – One of the most sarcastic articles in the book. The article is a paradox. “You can't get a life because it would kill you.” Enough said.
Floodsuckers – Jessica gives us the ugly realities of how our leaders react in times of disasters. It shows us how these honcho leaders focused more in creating their own good image than solving this country's crises. The article was written in May 1997 but it is still very applicable today. Let us get a Roxas as an example.
For more book reviews: https://the12monthbookchallenge.wordp...
I firmly believed that Jessica Zafra is a good and eloquent writer. I started reading her when I was in high school. She didn't appeal to me that much. Maybe because her intellectual prowess and writing style is beyond my mental reach. But now, as I found out that she was hospitalized (Get well soon!), I suddenly had this urge to reread again one of her books. It was like finishing an unfinished business with some stranger.
Fortunately, my friend lend me his copy of Twisted 3. And God, this woman never fails to surprise me. She was so good. Reading her makes me think and regret all those years I've hated her.
Reading Planet of the Twisted is like going to school. It teaches you how to think and look things differently. You are not graded based on your ability to memorize but on your ability to think outside, between and beneath the box. Every article, no matter how silly they sound, stimulates critical thinking.
The book is full of sarcasm. If you will not think deeper you will get lost and be eaten by your own stupidity.
Her endings are powerful and sometimes mind blowing. Reading her, will leave you either speechless or in agreement with everything she just said.
However, I must also acknowledge that there are other articles that I find a little off. There are articles where she often digresses from the main topic. It sometimes confuses me and I was like “What the hell did I just read?”
Anyway, the book is really good. I have not read the other Twisted books, but I can assure you that this one is worth buying. It is a book that you can reread all over again and won't feel any tiny bit of boredom. Planet of the Twisted is funny and hilarious, you won't run out of sarcasm.
To convince you more about how good the book was – here are some of my favorite articles from the book
The Philistine Foreskin Coin Purse – I like how Jessica discussed Filipino fanaticisms. Being a true Pinoy, she is among those credible people to write and give justice on this subject with eloquence and a bit of sarcasm. Agimats, faith healers and the likes, name it, she has it.
Afterlife Therapy – In this article, Jessica will remind us that death is inevitable and it is something that we cannot undo. And because of this, she encourages us with a punch in the gut that we should live our life to the fullest. “Life is good. You should get one.” Fair enough.
Tales from the Sisters Grim – Even before Dreamworks, Disney and other film producing outfits started to tweak and make fairy tale stories more interesting and a little bit action packed, Jessica is already clamoring for the hidden truths in these bedtime stories. In this article, Jessica has already her own accounts of fairy tale stories where villains teach us more important and sensible lessons in life than those heroines who just waited for a one particular perfect man (Prince Charming) to come. She also unlocks the hidden messages behind these stories.
“Cinderella’s publicists promoted her as a docile, submissive female rescued from a life of hard labor by her husband. This wimpy image was exactly what the male dominated society required. It sent the message to women everywhere that quiet submission was rewarded and that they were nothing without a man.”
Moses Supposes, Mother Supposes – Whether they are in stone tablets or just verbal commandments, our mothers have a lot of them and we have our whole lives to be reminded of all these orders, every single minute of our life. I cannot agree more with Jessica in this article. It is hilarious and very entertaining.
A Slice of Dread – Jessica retold her experiences and dread she had when she was young, during Lenten season. She also incorporated this to a far greater fear to horrendous scalawags roaming in luxury around town.
Profile of a Wannabe - “In this twisted world a person who takes pride in his looks, he loses them, plunges into self-loathing; a person who lives off his looks, then loses them just might be driven to kill.”
Aroint thee, Kate Moss – This is one of the articles I like the most. Aside from being funny and hilarious it speaks so much of the truth. I share the same sentiments with Jessica when it comes to food and dieting. Just like her, (I guess), I am not a fan of dieting. I enjoyed eating extra rice and I am a hard core fan of second servings. However, with all the media influences around us, we are constantly reminded that being beautiful means starving and hurting yourself. Well, fuck that.
Jessica's intellectual discourse about life,food and dieting is just riveting. Now, I take pride in every edges and curves in my body.
Immanuel Cant – One of the most sarcastic articles in the book. The article is a paradox. “You can't get a life because it would kill you.” Enough said.
Floodsuckers – Jessica gives us the ugly realities of how our leaders react in times of disasters. It shows us how these honcho leaders focused more in creating their own good image than solving this country's crises. The article was written in May 1997 but it is still very applicable today. Let us get a Roxas as an example.
For more book reviews: https://the12monthbookchallenge.wordp...
January 25, 2011
Jessica rules the universe!
November 12, 2013
Entertaining as usual.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews