A Brief Reading discussion

A little synopsis: 'These nine globe-trotting, unforgettable stories from Mia Alvar, a remarkable new literary talent, vividly give voice to the women and men of the Filipino diaspora. Here are exiles, emigrants, and wanderers uprooting their families from the Philippines to begin new lives in the Middle East, the United States, and elsewhere—and, sometimes, turning back again. '

Discussion starts on the 15th!!

I just got this yesterday! It looks so good. I can't wait to start reading it.

I'm so excited to read this. :) I'm Filipina and I have a feeling this will resonate--or hope it will, anyhow.

This one's on the longer side, y'all!! Just a head's up.

I'm two stories in and loving this. Mia Alvar is a terrific writer.

I've just finished the first two stories and holy freaking hell, it is so good. SO GOOD. I feel like a nail that's just been hit on the head by a hammer that are these stories.

I agree completely! This collection is amazing. Already want to film my review and just throw this book at people.

Okay. So i couldn't put this book down and am now down to the last story. I really, really love how this book uses tragedy and hilarity as mirrors for one another. Hnggghhhh. I almost don't want to finish it yet. But I know I will do, most probably by tonight.

Just one story in, but I thought it was a fantastic beginning!

Meredith, I hope you continue to enjoy!

Wina, I'm so glad you loved this!! You're so right about tragedy and hilarity being mirrors for one another - and that's such a universal experience. I'm forcing myself to stop at one story a day. It's so, so, so hard though!!

Sometimes Alvar will write a sentence that I'm just not expecting and nearly bring me to my knees. She should write all of the things forever. <3

YES I AGREE SHE SHOULD! And yes, exactly! I am so emotional over this at the moment. It's 11:55 pm here and it has taken all my willpower to put the book down. @_@

Wina, did you finish?? I know the final story is more like a novella.

I hope others are reading this collection. It's so quiet in here and this is such a deserving book.

Brooke wrote: "Wina, did you finish?? I know the final story is more like a novella.

I hope others are reading this collection. It's so quiet in here and this is such a deserving book."

I wonder if the group lost a little of its momentum because of the holidays? I think both this and Portable Childhoods are terrific and deserving of attention.

I haven't been able to get to it yet, but I plan on picking it up this weekend. It's sitting on my nightstand. Listening to you talk about it has made me even more interested in it.

Brooke! YES I HAVE. Yeah the last story was so long but so beautiful. hsuwiwkkzpxpla I want to reread it sometime next week if I have time.

So what was your favorite story, Wina?? I hoping to finish by Sunday. Currently reading 'Old Girl' - I think that's the title.

Last night I finished The Virgin of Monte Ramon. Still really loving this. I have never read a book about the Phillipines before, so I find that I'm learning a lot. I love it when books can do that--entertain you as well as teach you. Great choice Brooke!

Brooke, sorry for the late reply! This will sound like I'm cheating but I really couldn't choose just one. My favorites are: Legends of the White Lady, Shadow Families, The Virgin of Monte Ramon, A Contract Overseas, and In The Country.

While I loved everything else, I feel like these were the ones that were able to talk the best about that feeling of displacement and dislocation that runs through this entire book: that thin, thin boundary between being rich and being poor, being uneducated and being scholarly, being seen as beautiful and being called ugly. And upon giving it more thought, I also suspect that maybe at the heart of these five (or in the entire collection in general haha but especially in these), is a space where that disconnect can be given a place to exist.

I really liked Old Girl as well. I think that it does very, very well especially when alluding to such high-profile people. (For people on here who may not know a lot about Filipino history, it's alluding to Ninoy Aquino, who was kind of the "wonder boy" of Filipino politics in the 70s because he opposed the Marcos rule very openly (and was shot for it), and his wife, Cory, who became President post-Martial Law. :D) I feel like when stories do that, there's a risk that the story gets swallowed up by the bigger thing it's trying to mention in passing but I didn't feel that way with this. :D

How about you? (And everyone else!) I'm so excited to hear everyone else's thoughts on these stories!

I really enjoyed this collection! I love to travel but for when I can't, I turn to literature to fill the spaces and give me a taste of what I'm missing. In the Country did a very good job of doing just that. My favorite stories were Shadow Families and The Virgin of Monte Ramon. Will definitely be recommending Mia Alvar to those I know.

I really loved 'The Miracle Worker', 'Legends of the White Lady', and 'In the Country' so, so much. I think 'In the Country' was probably my absolute favorite. Because she took her time with it and I'm a complete sucker about any story that really gets at the heart of a marriage - for better or worse.

Like you said, Wina, so many of these stories reference real people and events. I don't know much about them personally so I'd love to do some further research and then re-read with more of an understanding of the country as a whole. I think that could be a really interesting re-reading experience and strengthen my love for the collection even more.

It's a book I hope transitions to the classroom and remains prominent going forward. It just has so much to offer readers and students and human beings, in general.

Just wanted to mention that this great collection is now out in paperback in the US!

Oh, yay!!