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noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 28 May 2009 17:13:00 +0000

Rereading El Fili

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Mon, 25 May 2009 11:58:00 +0000

After rereading the Noli a couple of months ago, I waited a while before starting on its sequel El Filibusterismo (book #80 of 2009), because I wanted to gather up the courage to read it again. Like everyone else who's read both novels, I've always found El Fili more challenging than the Noli, and I wanted sufficient time to focus on the novel so I could better understand it. I ended up taking it along on a couple of trips out of town this summer.

The review is also a challenge to write -- it's not easy to comment about a book that has been read and reread by generations of Filipinos, written by a man revered as national hero for more than a century now.

Again, to my non-Filipino readers, a bit of an explanation: Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo are two novels written by the Philippine national hero, Jose Rizal. Originally written in Spanish, and a catalyst for the change in political thinking in the 19th and 20th century Philippines, both novels are required reading for high school students in the country. It's a bit difficult to summarize -- you can read about it on Wikipedia.

As with the Noli, I read the Ma. Soledad Lacson-Locsin edition of El Fili (English title: Subversion) highly recommended by Flipper friend Czar (who now has his own blog!) for its rich language that tries to preserve the form and context of Rizal's original Spanish. Now that Czar has named the two books as the common reading requirement in the FFP Diversity Challenge, I'm glad I read the books before half the year set in, but I will have to regroup my challenge entries.

Identity change

Though as prodigiously written as the Noli, El Fili stands in contrast to the Noli as it goes deeper into the ideas that the first book touched upon, and gets darker and darker until the fiery end.

Crisostomo Ibarra, the protagonist from the Noli, returns in El Fili and sheds his preppy, pretty-boy image in favor of a new identity: the mysterious jeweler Simoun.

"The jeweler was a lean, tall, sinewy man , deeply tanned, dressed in the English fashion, and wearing a helmet of tinsin. What called attention to him was his long hair -- completely white in contrast to the black beard, which was sparse, denoting mestizo origin. To avoid the light of the sun, he always wore a pair of enormous, blue tinted glasses which completely covered his eyes and part of his cheeks, giving him the aspectof a blind man or one of defective eyesight. He stood with legs apart, as if to maintain his balance, hands thrust into the pockets of his jacket."

In El Fili Ibarra (as Simoun) returns to avenge all that he lost, driven to the brink of madness by all that he has experienced. The disguise is so conspicuous I'm surprised nobody figured him out for a fake sooner. But they figured Simoun was an American, he had strong ties with the Capitan-General and the assets to prove he was a jeweler. Nobody had reason to associate him with Ibarra, whom people thought to be dead, so he got away with it.

I find Ibarra's lot in life heartbreaking. A gently bred and educated son of a wealthy family and engaged to his childhood sweetheart, Ibarra had his whole life to look forward to when he returned from his studies abroad to his hometown. But alas, he inherits his father's enemies, and he is forced into a fate he did not want.

But it is not only Ibarra who has been transformed; time has not been kind to the other characters from the Noli, either: Basilio, the young boy hunted by the guardia civil, now a young man pursuing medicine; Maria Clara, beautiful and full of life, now wasting away at the Sta. Clara convent; Kapitan Tiago, dignified and jolly, now in a permanent opium-induced stupor. Such a tragedy!

The fire of revolution

It is difficult to discuss El Fili without touching on the revolution that Simoun incited in the novel. Simoun uses his ties with the Capitan-General and the upper class to influence them to abuse their position, to commit deeds that will stir the anger of the masses. While Ibarra would have sought diplomatic means to challenge the authorities, Simoun goes all out to set off a bloodbath, a violent revolution meant to eradicate a corrupted society.

Simoun gains the support of various aggrieved parties: Cabesang Tales, decrying the injustice his family suffered at the hands of the friars; the university students, who are proposing to establish a Spanish language academy but are meeting opposition from the Dominicans; Quiroga, a Chinese merchant aspiring for an important position in society; and eventually, Basilio, initially reluctant but pushed over the edge by the death of his sweetheart Juli.

At the biggest society event of their time -- the wedding of Paulita Gomez and Juanito Pelaez, Simoun plots to wipe out the prime movers of society by planting a lamp filled with nitroglycerine in the living room, set to explode when the wick is turned up.

Simoun's plan is foiled by Paulita's ex-boyfriend Isagani, and he meets his death at the remote seaside home of Padre Florentino, but I imagine that to the very end, he believes it was not all in in vain, as he once told Basilio:

"Patriotism can only be a crime in the oppressor nations, because then it will be rapacity baptized with a beautiful name, but no matter how perfect humanity may become, patriotism will always be a virtue among the oppressed peoples because it will signify for all time love of justice, freedom and self-dignity... The greatness of man lies not in being ahead of his times... but in divining his wants, responding to his needs and guiding himself to march forward."

One of the passages in the final chapter though, a piece by Padre Florentino, seems to cement Rizal's personal stand on waiting for the right time for revolution:

"In the meantime, while the Filipino people may not have sufficient energy to proclaim, with head high and chest bared, their rights to social life, and to guarantee it with their sacrifice, with their own blood; while we see our own countrymen in private life feeling shame within themselves, to hear roaring the voice of conscience which rebels and protests, in public life keep silent, to make a chorus with him who abuses to mock the abused; while we see them enclosed in their own selfishness, praising the most iniquitous deeds with forced smiles, begging with their eyes for a portion of the booty, why give them freedom? With Spain and without doubt, because he who loves tyranny submits to it. Señor Simoun, while our people may not be prepared, while they may go to battle beguiled or forced, without a clear understanding of what they have to do, the wisest attmpts will fail and it is better that they fail, because why commit the wife to the husband if he does not sufficiently love her, if he is not ready to die for her?"

Words that come to life
Politics isn't really something I enjoy reading, but as the novel isn't entirely political, I found a lot of other parts to like.

I really like Rizal's lavishly descriptive prose, as it takes you right to the heart of the scene, as if you were witnessing it before your very eyes.

For instance, this is how Rizal describes the steamship Tabo:

"Bathed by the morning sun, which makes the ripples of the river throb and the wind sing through the swaying reeds flourishing on both banks, there goes her white silhouette, waving a black plume of smoke; they say the Ship of State smokes much, too! Her whistle wails at every moment, raucous and imposing like a tyrant that seeks to rule by shouting; so much so that no one aboard understands himself. She threatens everything in her way, now seeming about to crush the salambaw, scraggy fishing contraptions which in their movements are not unlike skeletons saluting an antediluvian turtle; now running straight against the bamboo brushes or gainst the floating eating places or karihan, which, among gumamelas and already in water but still undecided on plunging in. Sometimes, following a certain bearing marked on the river with bamboo poles, the steamship moves very surely, but suddenly a shock jolts the travelers, making them lose their balance; she has struck low-lying mud which nobody suspected."

I actually took this book along an interisland trip that involved around eight ferry rides across the country, and so this particular passage was very vivid to me. All the while I could imagine traveling down the Pasig river in the steamship Tabo, surrounded by the hustle-bustle of the ship crew and passengers.

And then there's Simoun's casket of jewelry:

"Simoun opened the casket and lifted the raw cotton which protected it, uncovering a compartment full of rings, lockets, crucifixes, pins, and so forth. Diamonds combined with stones of different color sparkled, stirred among golden flowers of different hues with veins of enamel, with fanciful designs and rare arabesques.

Simoun lifted the tray and displayed another full of fantastic jewels which could have overwhelmed the imagination of seven young women on the eve of seven balls in their honor. such fantastic designs, combination of precious stones and pearls, imitating insects with bluish backs and transparent wings; the sapphire, the emerald, the ruby, the turquoise, the diamond were arranged together, to create dragonflies, butterflies, wasps, bees, scarabs, serpents, lizards, fish, flowers, clusters, and others...

Nobody had ever seen such wealth before. In that box lined with dark blue velvet, divided dinto sections, could be realized the dreams of a Thousand and One Nights, the dreams of Oriental fantasies. Diamonds as large as chickpeas were scintillating, spewing sparks of fascinating hues as if they were melting or burning perfectly in the colors of the spectrum; emeralds from Peru in all shapes and cuts; rubies from India, red like drops of blood; sapphires from Ceylon, blue and white; turquoises from Persia; Oriental mother-of-pearl; some rosy, gray and black. Those who have seen in the night a giant rocket exploding against the dark blue sky into thousands of sparks of all colors, so brilliant that the eternal stars pale beside them, can imagine the aura that compartment radiated.

This is actually one of my favorite passages in this book, even back when I first read it in high school. What a spread that must have been, and I'm not surprised all the ladies nearly swooned when Simoun brought out his wares. The casket ends up at the bottom of the sea at the end of the book, and it resurfaces in another novel written decades later, in Ang Mga Ibong Mandaragit by Amado V. Hernandez.

And sadder still

The part that affected me most in the book is that defining scene when Basilio reveals to Simoun that Maria Clara has passed away. More than revenge, Simoun is actually inciting a revolution so he can storm the gates of the cloister and rescue Maria Clara, so they can pick up where they left off and get a chance to live the life they were deprived of.

But alas, after thirteen years in the cloister, Maria Clara was taken ill and subsequently died after a few days.

Simoun is devastated by the news, and I couldn't help crying at this part:

"Dead!" he murmured in a voice so low it was as if a ghost were speaking, "dead! dead without having seen her, dead without knowing that I was living for hear, dead suffering..."

And feeling that a horrible storm, a tempest of whirlwinds and thunder without a drop of rain, sobs without tears, cries without words, roaored in his breast and was going to overflow like incandescent lava long ago suppressed, he hurridly fled the room. Basilio heard him rush down the stairs with erratic steps, tumbling; he heard a silent cry, a cry that seemed to herald the coming of death, deep, unbridled, mournful...

And Basilio thinks of the fate of Ibarra and Maria Clara:

"He, young, rich, lettered, free, master of his destiny, with a brilliant future ahead of him, and she, beautiful like a dream, pure, full of faith and innocence, cradled among loves and smiles, destined for a happy life, to be adored int eh family and respected in the world, and yet, nevertheless, those two beings, full of love, of dreams and hopes; by a fatal destiny, he wandered around the world, dragged without respite by a whirlpool of blood and tears, sowing bad instead of doing good, dismantling virtue and fomenting vice, while she was dying in the mysterious shadows of the cloister where she had sought peace and may perhaps have encountered sufferings, where she had entered pure and without stain and expired like a crushed flower!"

That's just the saddest thing ever. It makes me want to create an alternate universe for Ibarra and Maria Clara, where they can live happily ever after, but I think the power of the Noli and the El Fili, is in establishing how the forces at work in their society have affected their lives, just as historically, countless lives of Filipinos were changed by our experience as a colony.

And on an ending note...
It's a strange feeling, to read the books that have been read by millions of Filipinos over the last century, the books that have had the power to set the wheels of Philippine history in motion. While I can't say I carry the same fervor the first readers of the books must have had, I am gratified that the books are still alive today to serve as a link to them.

I still like Noli Me Tangere over El Filibusterismo, but I'm glad I took on the challenge of reading both books and writing a bit about them. I meant to read them for leisure, but the books have moved me more than I expected they would, and I appreciate them better now than I did back in high school.

I really love the Lacson-Locsin translations, and my next target is to upgrade my paperbacks into the nice hardcovers, hopefully at the next Manila International Book Fair.

***
My copy: El Filibusterismo, Lacson-Locsin translation, paperback.

My rating: 4/5 stars (out of personal preference on the themes of the novel, not on literary merit, which is obviously stellar)

No rants this time (Angels and Demons movie)

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:31:00 +0000

I enjoy reading Dan Brown, especially the Robert Langdon novels, because while you need to suspend your disbelief while reading the books, Brown knows how to build up a good chase.

I'm also a sucker for art thrillers, and I love the interesting artsy details that are incorporated into the novels, traversing artistic hotspots such as the Louvre and Vatican City, and dissecting the works of Leonardo Da Vinci, Galileo, and Bernini.

Other than that I love scholarly protagonists (e.g. Paul in The Historian, Sherlock Holmes) and Robert Langdon hits the mark on that aspect.

I distinctly remember the first time I read Angels and Demons: in ebook, format beamed to my phone from my computer, because I was in my last semester in college and I couldn't afford to buy brand-new books then. Angels and Demons is one of the scariest books I've ever read, and I remember getting even more scared a couple of months later, when Pope John Paul II died and I was imagining an Angels and Demons scenario playing out. Of course, that was just in my head, and the conclave proceeded without any events that resembled the Dan Brown plot.

By the end of the year I bought a hardbound Robert Langdon omnibus at Fully Booked at 40% off, so it was less than P400. I also have fond memories of this book, as it was one of my cat Tomas' (he died of kidney failure and cardiac arrest in November 2008) favorite perches when he was still a kitten.

Now I really didn't like the Da Vinci Code movie, because it was so boring and I felt it copped out at the end so I didn't have high expectations for Angels and Demons. I was out of town covering a race on opening week, so I decided to watch it as soon as I returned, never mind that everyone else I knew already saw it and I had to watch alone.

I normally have a problem with film adaptations, but I actually liked the Angels and Demons movie, which is surprising because the book is my favorite Dan Brown novel.

Not that they didn't deviate from the novel -- they eliminated Maximilian Kohler, Father Silvano became Vittoria's research partner, Camerlengo Carlo Ventresca turned into the Irish Patrick McKenna (hotness aside, I really had a hard time picturing Ewan McGregor in the role), Cardinal Baggia survived among the preferiti and became Pope (as opposed to Cardinal Strauss), and Langdon's famous parachute escape was glaringly missing, among other things -- but the pace was good and I didn't nod off at any point in the movie like I did at Da Vinci Code.

It's not a movie for critical acclaim, but at least, unlike its predecessor, it stands up well enough alone that even those who haven't read the book are able to follow the action.

I read at Dan Brown's site that the third Langdon novel, The Lost Symbol, is coming out this September. I'll definitely be reading that one.

***
My copy: Robert Langdon Omnibus, hardcover

My rating: Angels and Demons book 4/5 stars, Angels and Demons movie 3.5/5 stars

Kare Kano Marathon

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 21 May 2009 15:41:00 +0000

I like reading manga series when I can read them from the first volume. Luckily, I was able to mooch books 1, 2, and 4 of Kare Kano: His and Her Circumstances by Masami Tsuda from local moocher Cizi (books # 77-79 of 2009) and I’ve got book 3 on its way from the Netherlands.

Kare Kano is a romantic comedy featuring the seemingly perfect Yukino Miyazawa and her school rival Soichiro Arima.

Yukino is the #1 student in her high school, and is admired for her beauty, talent, and intelligence. But beneath the perfect façade, Yukino is a control freak playing a part, as she is a brat and a slob at home, studying obsessively to keep up her grades.

When she enters high school, the new student Soichiro shows up and gives her a run for her money. The perfect façade cracks, and Yukino plots to take him down and regain the attention of her peers, but she didn’t plan on falling in love with him in the process.

Yukino has more in common with Soichiro than she thinks, because Soichiro is keeping up the perfect façade to prove to himself and his adoptive parents that he did not get his birth parents’ bad genes.

As Yukino and Soichiro get to know each other and their relationship blossoms, they both learn to loosen up and be true to themselves.

Kare Kano is a he said - she said story, with chapters alternating between Yukino and Soichiro. It is one of the first series released by Tokyopop, an English-language manga publishing company that is fast becoming a favorite of mine.It has also been adapted into an anime series, although I have yet to watch it.

I like the character of Yukino, specifically because she reminds me a lot of myself back in school. Back then, I was always in the honors class, and I understand her need to keep up appearances to live up to other people’s expectations.

I also like the character of Soichiro, because I am such a sucker for overachievers and I really don’t blame Yukino for falling for him.

The chemistry between them is good, and the story gets pretty funny, especially when new characters, like the hunky Hideaki (book 2) and little Tsubasa (book 4) are introduced. There are also nice little moments like Yukino working up the courage to tell Soichiro she loves him, the first time they hold hands, the first date, the first hug, the first kiss. It’s a bit nostalgic for me, because I remember one particular person in my life, but hehe, that’s another story.

I also like the little notes in the margins left behind by Masami Tsuda, as well as the Tsuda diary section at the back of the book because it gives great insight into her creative process, and gives a better understanding of the context of some cultural nuances, like Japanese school uniforms, or references to Japanese novels.

I can't wait to read more of this series. Hopefully they'll turn up on BookMooch.

***
My copy: Books 1, 2, and 4 in paperback, local mooch

My rating: Book 1, 2, and 4: 4/5 stars

Back shortly

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 21 May 2009 04:35:00 +0000

Hi everyone!

Just got back from covering an interisland race, so pardon the lack of posts for the past seven days. Will have one up tonight though, and will resume regular blogging soon :)

Thanks!

The Perks: Bookstore Privilege Cards

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Wed, 13 May 2009 16:00:00 +0000

This week I achieved a goal I'd set for myself a couple of years ago: to acquire privilege cards to three major bookstores in the Philippines: National Book Store, Powerbooks and Fully Booked.

Having privilege cards to all three is convenient, albeit potentially hazardous to my wallet, because if I want a book from any of the three bookstores (haha, yes, I do buy brand new and full-priced books!), I won't have to worry about not having a privilege card to one store and having to postpone buying until I get to the other store.

To those who are planning on getting privilege cards to these stores, I also want to summarize the process of acquiring one and the benefits of each card. So here's the lowdown:

1) Powerbooks' Powercard / Powercard Plus- The first privilege card I actually got was the Powercard, which I got in 2005, because I began to buy books with my own money when I started working and I saw it as a great investment, especially with the Harry Potter books coming out. By the time Deathly Hallows rolled around, I was able to upgrade to a Powercard Plus. I didn't know about BookMooch yet at that time, so I bought P15,000 (around $300) worth of books in one year. Now that I have other book sources, the amount seems so obscene to me.

Here are the terms for the Powercard and Powercard Plus, from the Powerbooks website:

POWER CARD

A loyalty card that can be used as a discount card for a minimum purchase of Php 2,000. Powercard holders earn points for every purchase, which they can later use for future visits.

POWERCARD PLUS

An enhanced version of the existing Powercard, the Powercard Plus is a combination of a loyalty card and a discount card in one. For every purchase made, the customer is entitled to earn points and avail of a discount on valid titles.

POWERCARD PLUS/ POWERCARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS

TO APPLY FOR:

POWERCARD

* Outright Membership pay P100 fee or P50 fee for students (present valid ID)
* Free Membership present receipt(s), single or accumulated throughout a one year period, worth P5,000 and above.

POWERCARD PLUS
Just present receipt(s), single or accumulated throughout a one year period, worth P15,000 and above.

Note: Purchases using Powerbooks Gift Certificates and receipts of purchases which have earned or claimed loyalty points/discount cannot be used to apply for a Powercard or Powercard Plus. All applicants must present a valid I.D.

TO EARN POINTS/AVAIL DISCOUNT

* The Powercard or Powercard Plus must be presented upon reaching the cashier for payment to earn points and/or avail of discount.
* No card, no point-credit and/or discount. Manual entry of card number is not allowed.
* Loyalty points/discount can be claimed only during the transaction.
* Points earned and the equivalent e-purse value are instantly updated in the system every time a purchase is made.
* Purchases of Powerbooks Gift Certificates with cash or credit card will be awarded points.
* Purchases using the Powerbooks Gift Certificate, E-purse and credit memo as payment shall earn no point.
* Loyalty points apply after any discount.
* Dome food and drinks, Arts Center, All Wrapped-Up items and service fees are not valid to earn loyalty points/ avail of discounts.

DISCOUNT SCHEDULE

* 10% discount on cash purchases, 5% discount on credit card purchases.
* Discount not valid on special orders, bargain/ sale items, X items or XP items.

POINT SYSTEM

* Each peso is equivalent to one point. Any centavo value will be dropped in the calculation of points.
* Points are redeemable at every thousand points. One Thousand Points is equivalent to Fifteen Pesos (1,000 points= P15.00)
* The system automatically converts earned points to the equivalent e-purse value upon reaching the redeemable value (every 1,000 points).

E-PURSE

* It is an electronic purse where converted points are stored. This can be used to pay for purchases in any Powerbooks branch except for the purchase of Powerbooks Gift Certificates, Javaman food and drinks, All Wrapped-Up items and service fees.
* E-purse value can be used only during the validity of a card. The unused e-purse value of an expired card will be transferred to the new card upon renewal, provided the card is renewed within the month from expiry date.
* E-purse may be used to pay for renewal fee.
* The cardholder may use any e-purse amount for payment. The remaining amount can be used at another time, provided the card is still valid.
* Cardholder must present a valid ID when using E-purse for payment.

EXPIRY

* The Powercard or Powercard Plus is valid for three (3) years.
* Expired card should be surrendered at the Customer Service for renewal. A processing fee of P100 will be charged.
* Points earned by cardholders who do not renew within one (1) month from expiry date will be forfeited.
* Any account that is dormant for a period of at least one (1) year will be cancelled and all accumulated points and e-purse value in the card will be forfeited. Cardholders may re-apply by accumulating the required amount of purchases (P15,000.00 for Powercard Plus; P5,000.00 for Powercard or pay the P100.00 application fee).

CARD REPLACEMENT

* To replace a defective card, surrender the card at the Customer Service counter of any Powerbooks branch. Defective cards issued by Powerbooks will be replaced for free.
* To replace a lost card, present valid ID at the Customer Service counter of any Powerbooks branch and pay the replacement fee of P50.00.
* Points and e-purse value of a lost card, as reflected in Powerbooksdatabase, will remain in the cardholders account until the card expires.
* Replacement of cards damaged due to the cardholders mishandling will be charged a P50.00 replacement fee.

OTHER CONDITIONS:

* Loyalty points and e-purse value reflected in Powerbooks system shall be considered official and final.
* Powerbooks has the right to determine the point-value for every peso spent.
* Receipts of purchases using defective cards must be duly signed by Powerbooks authorized personnel to be considered valid for crediting points.
* Membership in the program may be revoked at any time should abuse, failure to follow the terms and conditions, or any misinterpretation prejudicial to the program take place. Those whose memberships have been revoked are ineligible to the rights and benefits of the program.
* During system maintenance, E-purse cannot be used for payment; purchases will still earn points, and the cardholders account will be updated when system maintenance is complete.
* Powerbooks has the right to cancel, modify, or restrict the loyalty/discount program at any time. In the event that the program is cancelled, cardholders will be notified accordingly.
* Should Powercard and/or Powercard Plus be cancelled, the remaining e-purse value must be used within 90 days from the date of cancellation. Remaining points equivalent to less than P15 e-purse value shall be cancelled.
* Powerbooks failure to enforce a particular term, condition, or guideline does not constitute a continuing waiver of the terms and conditions.
* The Powercard or Powercard Plus is non-transferable. Points and E-purse value earned are solely for the cardholders consumption.
* Powercard and Powercard Plus holders are subject to these Terms and Conditions and are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions upon signing the application form.

This reminds me -- I have to renew my Powercard Plus this month. Not that it's getting much use lately, I am still sore at them for canceling the Birthday Blowout (40% off on all purchases for one day in your birthday month) for Powercard Plus holders. But ooh, they have a new design, and I don't want to lose points on my old card (around P300).

The Pros: A point system that's convertible to cash, easy and affordable application for the Powercard

The Cons: You need a minimum P2000 purchase for a 10% discount with the Powercard, and upgrading to a Powercard Plus is challenging (P15,000 in one year is a bit much, I think), AND no more birthday blowout (hmf!).

2) National Book Store's Laking National Card (Laking National, loosely translated, means growing up on National Book Store, which holds true for most people in my generation) - I got this card in 2006, and I have to admit, it was because they were giving away a free bag with it, hehehe. I do regret not getting one earlier; I buy a lot of school supplies and art supplies, and National's selection (and bargain books!) has improved immensely recently and this card has been getting a lot of mileage. I think I reached P400 until I caved and redeemed the points one day when I didn't have any cash and I found the book on book collection.

Here are some details about the Laking National Card, from the National Book Store website:

Who Can Join

All valid Philippine residents with a valid I.D. can join the program. Children aged seven (7) years and above are also qualified to join.

How To Join

Apply at the Customer Service Counter of any National Book Store. Complete the application form and pay the P100.00 fee--or to get a FREE Card, just present receipts worth P5,000 accumulated over a 12-month period. Students can avail of the special application fee of P60.00 provided they present a valid school I.D.

While waiting for the release of your new Laking National Card you can already start earning points by collecting your receipts. They will be credited when you claim your card.

Sign-up and Renewal Bonus Points

Upon signing up and renewal of membership, members receive 1,000 bonus points.

Members who availed of free membership through accumulated receipts worth P5,000 will also get 1,000 sign-up bonus points plus a maximum 5,000 bonus points.

Benefits

Great reasons to become a Laking National member!

* Members earn 1 Point for every peso purchase. Points are converted to P10.00 ePurse for every 1,000 points earned. ePurse may be used any time and at any branch, to pay for the member’s purchases.
* Sign-up bonus worth 1,000 points.
* Renewal bonus worth 1,000 points.
* Discounts on selected books and non-book items on specific occasions.
* Free gift-wrapping service on special occasions such as Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day and Graduation.
* Free email alerts on in-store promotions and events.
* Discounts and freebies from partner establishments.
* Pre-sale privilege at the annual Cut Price Book Sale.
* Free premium item for every P1,000 accumulated purchase during the program’s anniversary month (October).
* Special privilege during in-store events, i.e. free entrance ticket for one companion.
* Exclusive Quick Shop Service for a minimum purchase amount worth P1,000.

Earning Points

Members may earn points for purchases in any National Book Store branch. Purchases valid to earn points are all books and non-book products, such as magazines, gift-wrapping materials, etc., services, such as photocopying, laminating, etc.

Purchase of items on sale is also valid for points. Points will be credited after the discount.

Purchases using the Laking National Gift Certificate or e-Purse as payment shall earn no point. Purchases of National Book Store Gift Certicates with cash or credit card will be awarded points. However, purchases using the National Book Store Gift Certificate as payment shall earn no point.

Wholesale purchases with wholesale discount are not valid for earning points.

The Laking National card must be presented upon reaching the cashier for payment to earn points. No card, no points.

e-Purse

e-Purse may be used to pay for purchases at any National Book Store branch, except for the purchase of NBS Gift Certificates. The member may choose the e-Purse amount to be used for payment. The remaining amount can be used at another time.

Only the member is authorized to redeem his/her e-Purse. NBS reserves the right to require the member to present a valid ID upon redemption.

E-Purse value can be used only during the validity of the card. The unused e-Purse value or points of an expired card will be transferred to the new card upon renewal, provided the card is renewed within one (1) month from the expiry date.

Expiry

The Laking National card is valid for three (3) years. The expired card should be surrendered at Customer Service for renewal. A processing fee of P100 will be charged.

Points earned by cardholders who do not renew within one (1) month from the expiry date will be forfeited. Any Laking National account that is dormant for a period of three (3) consecutive years will be cancelled and all accumulated points and e-Purse value in the card will be forfeited.

Card Replacements

To replace a faulty card, surrender the card at any NBS Customer Service Counter and complete the application form. Faulty cards issued by NBS will be replaced for free.

To replace a lost card, present a valid ID at any NBS Customer Service Counter and complete the application form. A processing fee of P100.00 will be charged. The card validity will also be adjusted by adding three (3) years. For example, a member lost his card on June 1, 2006 and expiration date of the card is December 1, 2007. When the member applies for a card replacement on July 1, 2006, the new card that would be issued to the member will have the expiration date moved to July 1, 2009.

Replacement of cards damaged due to the cardholder's mishandling will also be charged a P100.00 replacement fee. The same rule regarding the expiration date stated above applies.

Points and e-Purse values in lost cards will be transferred to the new card.

Updating Member Information

Members are responsible for informing National Book Store of any changes in relevant personal information such as home address, email address, mobile phone, last name etc. Members may send the information via email at lnc@nationalbookstore.com.ph.

General Conditions

* Your Laking National Smart Card is not transferable, including your points and e-Purse earned.
* The loyalty points reflected in National Book Store's records and the member's card shall be considered official.
* National Book Store has the right to determine the point value for every peso spent.
* Membership in the program may be revoked at any time should abuse, fraud, failure to follow the terms and conditions, or any misinterpretation prejudicial to the program take place. Those whose memberships have been revoked are ineligible to the rights and benefits of the program.
* Should the Laking National loyalty program be cancelled, the remaining e-Purse value must be used within 90 days from the date of cancellation. Remaining points equivalent to less than P10 e-Purse value shall be cancelled.
* National Book Store will forfeit any earned Laking National points of items returned.
* National Book Store's failure to enforce a particular term, condition, or guideline does not constitute a continuing waiver of the term and condition.
* Laking National members are subject to these Terms and Conditions and are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions upon signing the Laking National application form.

The Pros: A point system that's convertible to cash, easy and affordable application for a Laking National Card (no need to upgrade), 20% off on the selected book of the month (right now it's Angels and Demons) and a wide range of items to rack up points on!

The Cons: National Book Store clerks don't always ask if you have your card and just go ahead and punch in your purchases.

3) Fully Booked's Book Perks Card - I actually just got it this week, because for two years now I've been contemplating how I can accumulate P10,000 to get one or shell out P700 for it. I've been holding back on Fully Booked purchases because I didn't have the card yet, but now all impediments (other than the financial one) have been removed: I finally got my Book Perks card today (thanks to a fellow booklover), and it came with a 20% discount voucher too! Sweet!

Here's some more info on the card, from the Fully Booked website:

Enjoy the perks of a Fully Booked Discount card by getting a 10% discount for cash purchases and 5% discount for credit card purchases on selected items.

Option 1: Customers with a total purchase of P10,000 on a single receipt will be automatically included in our discount card list.

Option 2: For accumulated purchases, a customer may avail his discount after reaching P15,000 within a year.

Option 3: Or just pay P700 and enjoy your perks instantly.

Discounts not applicable on magazines, office supplies and consigned items.

Fully Booked Discount Card Terms and Conditions:

1. A customer can apply for a Fully Booked Discount Card through any of the following ways:

a. One-time single-receipt purchase worth P10,000
b. Accumulation of receipts worth P15,000
c. Purchase of discount card for P700

Applicants must present a valid ID.

2. Each cardholder shall be issued a Fully Booked Discount Card, which is valid for 2 years from the date of issuance.

3. The Fully Booked Discount Card entitles cardholders to a 10% on cash purchases and a 5% discount on credit card purchases on selected items only. The discount does not apply to magazines, office supplies, CD’s, DVD’s, consigned items and gift certificates. Furthermore, no discount applies to purchases paid with gift certificates.

4. Unless otherwise stated, the Discount Card is not valid in conjunction with other promotions and discounts, or with direct sales discounts.

5. Cardholders must present their card to avail of the discount. No card, no discount. Discounts may not be applied retroactively to any prior purchases.

6. The Fully Booked Discount Card is non-transferable and may be used only by the individual whose signature appears on the card. Fully Booked may request for proper identification with regard to Discount Card transactions.

7. The Fully Booked Discount Card is valid only for use in Fully Booked, Fully Booked Express, Sketch Books and Bibliarch stores. It is not valid for purchases made on www.fullybookedonline.com

8. Fully Booked reserves the right to: (a) amend the Fully Booked Discount Card privileges and these terms and conditions, (b) to decline the renewal of any Fully Booked Discount Card membership without prior notice at the sole discretion of Sketch Books, Inc, and (c) cancel, modify or restrict the Discount Card program at any time, without prior notice.

9. To replace a lost card, cardholder should present a valid ID at the Customer Service counter of any Fully Booked branch and pay the replacement fee of P100.

10. Fully Booked reserves the right to withdraw, suspend or terminate any Fully Booked Discount Card membership, and refuse any re-issue or replacement of any Fully Booked Discount Cards on reasonable grounds. Reasonable grounds shall include (a) any abuse or attempted abuse of the Fully Booked Discount Card scheme, or (b) any use or attempted abuse of a Fully Booked Discount Card otherwise than in accordance with these terms and conditions, or (c) any reasonable suspicion of dishonesty on the part of the Cardholder in connection with the Fully Booked Discount Card membership scheme.

11. The Fully Booked Discount Card is the property of Sketch Books, Inc. If found please return to Fully Booked at 902 Bonifacio High Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

12. CARDHOLDER PRIVACY. By becoming a Fully Booked Discount Card cardholder, you agree to receive the Fully Booked eZine, advertising, marketing materials and other communications from Fully Booked. From time to time, Fully Booked may send you promotions and offers from carefully screened third-party marketing partners. Your personal information will not be sold or shared with aforementioned third parties.

The Pros: Ten percent discount for cash purchases, five percent for credit card purchases

The Cons: Not easy to acquire (again, P10,000 outright purchase, P15,000 in one year or P700 -- this is why it took me a long time to get one!), no point accumulation system, not valid for sale periods, and only valid for two years!

***

Squee!!! Finally I have all three of them! I'm partial to the Laking National Card, but I'm sure my Fully Booked Card will be used a lot this year, and I will be renewing my Powercard Plus. More books for me!

Now if only there was a privilege card for Book Sale I'd be the first in line to get one...

They don’t make them like they used to

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Wed, 13 May 2009 01:00:00 +0000

Romance novels were very big with the girls in my high school, and it was then when I read all the Judith McNaught and Julie Garwood romance novels I could get my hands on. These days, I’ve outgrown the romance novel phase, but I still read them once in a while, for that happily-ever-after fix.

Judith McNaught’s Every Breath You Take (book #77 for 2009) came out in 2005, way after I finished high school, but I didn’t get myself a copy until recently, because it was available on BookMooch.

The book takes us back to Chicago, back where McNaught’s popular Paradise is set. William Wyatt, grandson of wealthy philanthropist goes missing, and the police suspect foul play, casting suspicion on William’s estranged half-brother, Mitchell Wyatt.

Kate Donovan meets Mitchell Wyatt on the tropical island of Anguilla, and a romantic encounter develops between them. Kate soon finds herself entangled in a web of deception and a high-profile murder, and must struggle to keep herself and her loved ones alive.

I’m not particularly keen on how Judith McNaught (and Julie Garwood) have left behind their old styles and jumped towards writing romance thrillers. I’m a romance purist, because when I read a romance novel, it’s really for the gushy, awwww-inducing sappiness of it and I don’t really appreciate how they’ve complicated it.

Every Breath You Take does have some Judith McNaught trademarks – the momentous one-liners (usually containing the title of the book), the to-die-for leading man, the spirited female, and the good dynamics between the leads, but you have to read through all the high-drama murder to get to the good parts.

There’s another Judith McNaught novel that came out fairly recently but I haven't read yet: Someone to Watch Over Me. There’s actually a hardcover copy of it waiting in my TBR pile, but I’m not looking forward to it because it’s another romance thriller and the plot sounds more complicated than I’m willing to commit to.

Sigh. They really don’t make romance novels like they used to.

***
My copy: mass market paperback, local mooch, upgraded into hardcover with dust jacket, mooched from the US

My rating: 3/5 stars

Store in a cool, dry place

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:30:00 +0000

Several weeks ago, I spotted the book Shelf Life by Rosie Walford with Paula Benson and Paul West (book #76 for 2009) at Book Sale but it was priced P170 (around $3.50) so as amusing as it appeared to be, I decided to pass. Whenever I’m in Book Sale and a book I like is too expensive (i.e. over P100, that's around $2) and I don’t think I’ll lose sleep if I don’t buy it right away, I usually pass because I’m always hopeful that a cheaper copy will turn up sooner or later.

This Sunday, I found a copy of Shelf Life at another Book Sale branch and it was only P90 (under $2), so I decided the book belonged on my book shelf.

Shelf Life, subtitled “A celebration of the world’s quirkiest brands,” is a pictorial collection of local products from all over the world that have funny and peculiar (often suggestive) brand names.

I’ll let some photos from the book do the talking, just pardon the whacked-out angles as my scanner is currently out of commission.

Dutch brown sugar

I wonder exactly how inviting this one is?

sounds ominous...

Maybe it talks?

It must have some special properties!

And here are a couple of brands that are available here in the Philippines:

I've always been queasy at the thought of ingesting this.

One of my favorite childhood snacks!

The book is a lot of fun to leaf through, and I was in stitches the whole time!

***
My copy: hardcover

My rating: 4/5 stars

A narf, a seamstress, and the orchestra (Picture book roundup #5)

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Mon, 11 May 2009 03:58:00 +0000

It’s been a while since my last picture book roundup, mainly because I haven’t had the time to put some protective plastic cover on my new picture book acquisitions (and you know I can't read a "naked" book).

I got three picture books that came already encased in plastic, so here they are in today’s roundup: Lady in the Water: A bedtime story by M. Night Shyamalan (illustrated by Crash McCreery), Lucy Dove by Janice Del Negro (illustrated by Leonid Gore), and Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss (illustrated by Marjorie Priceman), books 73-75 for 2009.

Lady in the Water is based on the film of the same title. Having watched that documentary about M. Night Shyamalan on cable that turned out to be a hoax (a guerilla tactic for the pre-publicity of The Village), I still get the creeps reading this book, which, in a cautionary tone, tells the reader about the narf, the “lady in the water,” a rare type of sea nymph that could be living right in your backyard.

The narrator enumerates the signs that point to a narf: sprinklers going off by mistake, slime in the swimming pool, pinpricks in the chest, and the narf looks for a person that can be used as a vessel so that she can return to the ocean.

But there is something else that could be in your backyard, the hyena-like scrunt that hunts for the narf as prey. The scrunt is also afraid of Tartutic, three monkey-like creatures that lie in wait for the scrunt to make a wrong move.

While I don’t particularly care for the story, or Shyamalan’s writing style, I like the muted, almost monochromatic illustrations of Crash McCreery, because they amplify the eerie quality of the words.

Second on the list is a book based on an old Celtic tale. Lucy Dove is a seamstress recently sacked from the laird’s premises, because she was growing old and her sewing was slowing down. Wanting to retire comfortably, Lucy Dove takes on the laird’s challenge: to sew a pair of trousers by the light of the moon in the haunted St. Andrew’s graveyard. The laird needs the trousers for good luck (according to his soothsayer), and would give a bag of gold to anyone who could present him with the trousers.

As Lucy Dove sews the trousers in the graveyard, a monster rears its head from the ground and attempts to give her the same fate as the many men who did not live to tell the tale of what lurks in the graveyard, but Lucy Dove’s feistiness is the monster’s undoing.

On the dust jacket, it says that the author, Janice Del Negro, is a children’s librarian who likes stories with active heroines that offset the passive female protagonists of many popular fairy tales. I like this about the book, because it doesn’t showcase a girl pining for a prince charming, waiting to be saved.

Leonid Gore’s hazy, textured illustrations have a dream-like, otherworldly feel to them that is also very interesting, and it leaves a lot for the imagination to work with.

Finally, the last book in the roundup is the 1996 Caldecott honor book Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin, a one of a kind counting book about the orchestra, identifying various musical instruments in rhythmic verses. The book goes from a solo to a duo, a trio, a quartet, a quintet, a sextet, a septet, an octet, and a nonet, until the musicians form a chamber group of ten.

I like this picture book because even though I cannot read a note to save my life, I love classical music. I love how the verses in the book sound so musical as you read them:

With mournful moan and silken tone,
Itself alone comes ONE TROMBONE.
Gliding, sliding, high notes go low;
ONE TROMBONE is playing solo.

Gleeful, bleating, sobbing, pleading,
Through its throbbing double-reeding;
OBOE, please don’t hesitate:
Come, make it an OCTET – that’s EIGHT.

Marjorie Priceman’s elegant fluid illustrations are perfect for the poetry, and I like the touch of whimsy added by the four animals – a mouse, two cats (a gray shorthair and an orange tabby) and a yellow spotted dog – chasing one another on the stage.

That’s it for now, and until the next roundup!

***
My copies: Lady in the Water, from FFP bookswap (from seez Ajie), hardcover with dust jacket; Lucy Dove and Zin! Zin! Zin!, both library discards mooched from the US, both hardcover with dust jacket.

My rating: Lady in the Water, 2/5 stars; Lucy Dove 3/5 stars, Zin! Zin! Zin! 5/5 stars

The Great Book Blockade of 2009

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 08 May 2009 23:46:00 +0000

When my book club friends and I came back from our trip to the Mountain Province, one of the first things that caught our attention was the issue now known as The Great Book Blockade of 2009, brought to public attention by Robin Hemley.

tsk tsk tsk... Bad news for Pinoy Book Lovers

The issue has been a hot topic in the Flips Flipping Pages forum and all over the blogosphere. Here is the email that has been circulating:

FW: No More Newly Imported Books in the Philippines; the Reason Why
Monday, May 4, 2009 3:51 PM
In the last few months, the importation of books into the Philippines has virtually stopped. (I've noticed it at Fully Booked) The reason why is explained in this article by Robin Hemley, a University of Iowa creative writing professor currently on a fellowship in the Philippines . If you have no time to read the article (and I suggest you do), the essence is that because the Bureau of Customs has decided to impose duties on the importation of books into the Philippines .
This, despite the 1950 Florence Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials (which you can see here), which the Philippines ratified in 1979. The preamble of the agreement states: "Considering that the free exchange of ideas and knowledge and, in general, the widest possible dissemination of the diverse forms of self-expression used by civilizations are vitally important both for intellectual progress and international understanding, and consequently for the maintenance of world peace...", an indisputable proposition. Towards that end, Article I(1)(a) of the Florence Agreement states:

"1. The contracting States undertake not to apply customs duties or other charges on, or in connection with, the importation of:

(a) Books, publications and documents, listed in Annex A to this Agreement;"

What does Annex A state?

"Annex A

Books, publications and documents

(i) Printed books. xxx"

Obviously, this new policy of the Bureau of Customs contravenes the Florence Agreement. More fundamentally, shunting aside the legalities, this is a tax on knowledge imposed by people who are not that smart. Only through intellectual progress can we have a fighting chance to succeed as a nation, and intellectual progress can only be possible in an atmosphere where information and ideas flow free and freely. And if you think that the problem will be cured by carving an exception for "educational books", then you are wrong. Ideas are not confined to textbooks -- they are steeped in fiction, non-fiction, poetry, pulp novels, and Mad Magazine. By no means, in 1887, would Noli me Tangere have been considered an "educational book", but it reeks of enlightenment and liberal ideas from which the reader can learn from. That is why the Florence Agreement is unequivocal in its prohibition of duties on books.

Please forward this or disseminate this in any way you can. In the name of reading.

Now I don't think the importation of books has "virtually stopped," as the email claims, and while I would very much like to blame Twilight (hahaha!), I can't say I'm really surprised about this, because as my book club friends at Flips Flipping Pages and BookMoochers Pilipinas would know, I have personally encountered this taxation issue with the customs officer at my local post office.

The ugly story...
Last year, when I joined BookMooch, I started getting lot of books from abroad that may have looked too much for an average Filipino's book consumption, but, well, you know me... Anyway, Customs charges a "storage fee" for most of the parcels that get sent to me, and I get claim cards for the parcels, which state that I have to retrieve them at the post office, after paying P35 (around US $0.70) and having the parcels arbitrarily strip-searched (because who knows what evils lurk in between the book pages?).

So the first time I got flagged down, it was because I mooched two big computer software books from Japan -- those thick ones that look like telephone directories. They wouldn't release the books because although they looked obviously used, the post office guy (the one who validates the claims) told me customs officer because, get this, the books supposedly "had value" because there were published prices on the back cover!!!

By then the post office crew had been seeing me at least twice a week and they knew I wasn't buying the books in the first place, and I tried to explain about BookMooch but they wouldn't release the package.

To make matters worse, the customs guy came past 9am already. I was already in the process of making a very irate call to the Post Office customer service, but apparently the customs guy is not a post office employee and they have no hold on his working hours.

Anyway, when he got there, the package was released, because I made it clear I wasn't going to pay nearly a thousand bucks (about $20) for books that didn't cost me anything in the first place. But all that trouble, not to mention I was late to work, just because they wouldnt release a measly package right away was really unnecessary.

...gets uglier!

Things were fine for a while after that, and then bam! I was flagged down for a second time.

I manage my cousin Dianne's BookMooch account, because she's busy with hospital duty, and on top of my parcels, I receive her books too. So one particular day, I had like 5 claim cards and they tried to tax me, and worse, they threatened to never let me get any books without tax anytime I return to the MCPO to get books.

They tried to charge me P1200 for books, again, based on the published price of the book on the dust jacket/ cover, totally disregarding the value declared by the sender on the customs declaration form ($0-$1), and basing the rate on the published rates on the cover. Now if I had purchased the books that would have been fine, or if they had wanted to tax me on the declared value on the customs form, I'd have been fine with that too.

But the smug customs guy said that regardless of the "declared value" or whether it was a gift or it was purchased, I had to pay the taxable amount based on the value of the book as published on the cover!

And then they accused me of trying to evade taxes! And of treating them like animals, to boot! I did not personally insult them, I was just demanding for information on why they were charging me an exorbitant amount of money!

And then the customs officer goes, "O sige, ililibre ka namin ngayon pero last mo na to.... Boys, tandaan nyo tong babaeng ito.... Sa susunod hindi na yan libre, magbabayad na yan ng tax." (Translation: "Ok, we'll let this slide for now, but this will be your last. Boys, remember this girl... Next time she won't get off free, she'll have to pay the tax."

It was really traumatic for me. I was thinking, if it was really customs procedure, why don't they enforce it every single time, and only when I was claiming several packages at the same time? I didn't see the point of claiming packages one at a time because it meant too many trips to the post office, but why weren't they flagging me down when I only had one parcel to claim? And if it really was the law, how come they were willing to "let it slide"?

But it doesn't end there.
Indignantly, I called all possible outlets at the Bureau of Customs but they were volleying me around, so as a last resort, I sent them a letter.

I related the incident in my letter, and pointed out the Tariff Law on books:

BOOK I: TARIFF LAW
...
Sec. 105. Conditionally Free Importations. — The following articles shall be exempt from the payment of import duties upon compliance with the formalities prescribed in, or with the regulations which shall be promulgated by the Commissioner of Customs with the approval of the department head:
...
s. Philosophical, historical, economic, scientific, technical and vocational books specially imported for the bona fide use and by the order of any society or institution, incorporated or established solely for philosophical, educational, scientific, charitable or literary purposes, or for the encouragement of the fine arts, or for the bona fide use of and by the order of any institution of learning in the Philippines: Provided, That the provisions of this subsection shall apply to books not exceeding two copies of any one work when imported by any individual for his own use, and not for barter, sale or hire.

Bibles, missals, prayerbooks, koran, ahadith and other religious books of similar nature and extracts therefrom, hymnal and hymns for religious uses, specially prepared books, music and other instrumental aids for the deaf, mute or blind, and textbooks prescribed for use in any school in the Philippines: Provided, That complete books published in parts in periodical form shall not be classified herein.

t. Newsprint, whenever imported by or for publishers for the exclusive use in the publication of newspapers.

u. Articles donated to public or private institutions established solely for educational, scientific, cultural, charitable, health, relief, philanthropic or religious purposes, for free distribution among, or exclusive use of, the needy.

I ended up sending a three-page incident report to the BOC via fax and email, and thought nothing would happen, that my letter would be swallowed up by the great abyss that is our government bureaucracy...

And then an officer from the Internal Inquiry and Prosecution Division-Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (IIPD-CIIS) (who would have thought they had this department) actually called me up regarding my letter and informed me that they have sent a subpoena to the said customs officer.

They actually wanted to invite me over to the BOC for a dialogue, which I refused, in light of my backbreaking workload, and besides, if I wanted to see the guy I'd really just have to go to the post office.

The officer said they needed me to withdraw my complaint or come up with a resolution so they can file the case as resolved.

So I asked them to fax me a copy of the letter filed by the customs officer, and they did,and I was apoplectic with disbelief. Here are some extracts from the letter (note the sleaziness oozing from it) in italics, comments mine:

"Being the Customs Representative, I am duty-bound to observe and effect the standard procedures in effecting the ends of the agency to the public in the most cordial and professional manner. As always, the normal process was observed to the letter, from opening/inspection of the parcel item to the levy of duties, if any, all of which within the sight of public and postal employees assisting in the Customs station. However upon inspection of the contents of the parcel, there appeared a cover price on the books contained thereof, of which per provisions from the customs manual, subject parcel item was taxable."

Again with the cover price. He wasn't even able to explain why it was taxable in the first place.

"At this juncture, Ms. Singson (the collecting party), insisted that the books were mere donations in nature, citing the attached customs declaration prepared by the sender and declared used books. But, I reminded her that there was no accompanying deed of donation, as required to same. Still she insisted that she used to collect parcels on this station, on the same condition, without paying the corresponding duties thereon. However as there were already a number of addressee-collectors waiting to be attended, I readily give-in to her wish and did not further contested her claim and have her parcel item, free of taxes."

If he had asked for a deed of donation, I think I would have backed down. He did not mention anything, and I would have informed the rest of my BookMoocher friends that we needed a deed of donation if he really said that. But he never mentioned it until the letter!

And "a number of addressee-collectors?" I was alone during the incident.

This is the galling part:
"But to my dismay, upon perusal of her written complaint, I was significantly alarmed and disturbed as all her written assertions were false, heresy and malicious in nature, out to besmirch my good name and reputation. How could I utter unsavory words in front of the mailing public? This that the assisting postal employee and other postal employess assigned with this station could attest and sustain my innocence to her baseless offense. It was lamentable, that after extending some assistance, only to be later adjudged with immoral manner? Do public servants will always fall prey to the wisp and caprices and unbalanced views of media people, out to discredit the good name and reputation of a public employee, freely and wittingly? May I end with prayers, that your good office be of support and inspiration to my plight, as allegations therein were baseless and self-serving for her own interest."

It was laughable that this man who is twice my size was playing the victim role here. And he called me a media person with unbalanced views? If I really wanted to abuse my position (hello, I am a mere contributor to a newspaper, how far would that get me?) I would've gotten something published without checking the facts and going through the proper channels of complaint within the BOC (which I didn't really count on -- how was I to know they took complaints seriously?!?)

I was really offended and I told the IIPD-CIIS guy that if the customs officer wanted me to withdraw my complaint and have his subpoena lifted, that letter was not the way to do it.

But the customs officer got a change of heart the next time I went to the post office -- he was practically falling over his feet to usher me into his office. He was certainly in a very jolly mood, completely forgetting the fact that he called me a self-serving liar out to besmirch his character.

Chummy and apologetic (imagine that!), he said that I really didn't have to go as far as filing a report to the BOC, that he really didn't want to give me a hard time, that it was the Post Office assistants who really wanted to apply taxes to my packages (that's right, pin the blame on the staff).

He assured me that he will personally take care of all my package claiming needs in the future.

Then I motioned to the packages I claimed, and requested that they inspect them already because I was going to be late

And he chuckles (as if I suggested something absurd), "Alam naman natin na libro yan. Nag-iinspect lang kami pag di namin alam ang laman." (We know those are books, we only inspect packages when we don't know what's inside."

I then proceeded over to the mailing counter to get a couple of packages to send out, and then Mr. Mario deigns to emerge from his office, strolls out on the floor to me and volunteers to give me the number of the IIPD office so I can call the chief so I can report that we were able to iron out the matter (i.e. withdraw my complaint).

I ended up withdrawing my complaint, because I didn't want any more trouble, but it amazed me how people can make a complete turnaround when you blow the whistle on them. I never had any more trouble after that.

Incidentally, last week when I claimed some packages, the said customs officer was not there anymore, and a different officer was in place. My parcels were subjected to the normal search, but I didn't get any grief.

Sheesh!

Anyway, going back to the Great Book Blockade, it's disgusting, how they are suddenly doing a retrograde enforcement of something that has supposedly slipped past their attention for 30 years.

And really, the attempt to segregate books into educational and non-educational classifications only shows their ignorance: they're obviously not readers.

A lot of people have put in their two cents' worth about it:
http://www.quezon.ph/2009/05/03/the-great-book-blockade-of-2009/
http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20090504-202929/The-great-book-blockade-of-2009
http://www.charles-tan.blogspot.com
http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2009/05/essay-more-great-philippine-book.html
http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2009/05/robin-hemley-responds.html
http://pgenrestories.multiply.com/journal/item/815/The_Great_Book_Blockade_of_2009
http://jessicarulestheuniverse.com/2009/05/05/a-taxing-matter/
http://joelchua.com/blog/2009/05/05/philippine-customs-now-taxes-imported-books-twists-international-law/
http://www.refineme.org/2009/05/09/the-great-book-blockade-of-2009/
http://blackbodyslists.blogspot.com/2009/05/low-blow-on-pinoy-bookworms.html

and we now have a Facebook Cause: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/280535?m=cc366e79

There's also a great event coming up, in protest of the book blockade, thanks to Tina for the heads up: http://gangbadoy.multiply.com/photos/album/130/WE_AINT_TAXIN_BOOKS_HERE

Our section in Manila Bulletin, Students and Campuses, will be coming up with a story next week, I know Ron is working on it, and he's interviewing the parties involved. I'm really looking forward to reading that story.

Doggone it!

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 08 May 2009 14:29:00 +0000

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm not a fan of talking animals.

I love animals (I have a pure white shorthair cat named Missy, and a shih tzu- maltese mix named Macky), but in books, they're usually one of three things: a) sickeningly cutesy, b) wise and all-knowing, or c) sarcastic and wisecracking.

The persona in Peter Mayle's A Dog's Life (book #72 for 2009) belongs to that third category, unfortunately.

Now I'm a big fan of Peter Mayle, but this is probably my least favorite book of his, not that it isn't well written (he's one of the best contemporary writers I've read), but because I just couldn't get myself to buy the fact that it was a dog talking to me.

A Dog's Life is about Boy, the Mayles' dog, and how he goes from unwanted puppy to abused servant to thieving stray, and finally as a member of the Mayles' Provencal household. In all fairness, the idea of a dog narrator is quite original, and Boy is very eloquent (with an astoundingly sophisticated vocabulary!), but I got the feeling that he talked too much.

Boy was going on and on and on about well, dog stuff -- going after the mailman, getting a girlfriend, jumping on the bed, knocking down a glass of wine, chasing cats, chewing shoes, and all other things dogs do -- and some of it is amusing, but it gets tiring after awhile. I mean, just how long can a person stand reading about the excruciating details of a dog's life?
I love dogs, but this book still fails to sustain the interest for me.

***
My copy: trade paperback, local mooch

My rating: 2/5 stars

***
Postscript

By the way, this was the only book I finished during the trip I took up to the mountains (Sagada, Mountain Province and Bontoc, Mountain Province) with some book club friends.

Caught reading on the bus

I brought along four other books but between the long hours of travel (mostly on zigzagging roads), the seven-hour spelunking and the various other treks we made, I didn't even make a dent in them. But it was a great trip, and my reading ratio can afford to slack off a bit. Here are some photos, just so you know what I've been up to:

Squeezing through

in front of a mushroom-shaped rock

on top of a frog-shaped rock

by the waterfalls

what locals refer to as taplod (top load)

giant bamboo

the rice terraces

More photos here:
http://sumthinblue.multiply.com/photos/album/271
http://sumthinblue.multiply.com/photos/album/272
http://sumthinblue.multiply.com/photos/album/273
http://sumthinblue.multiply.com/photos/album/274
http://sumthinblue.multiply.com/photos/album/275

I'm off on an islandhopping trip next week, hopefully I can get some reading done then.

Family Ties

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 08 May 2009 01:49:00 +0000

Have you ever wished you were born to a different family?

The thought is something most of us have probably entertained while growing up, especially during the not so few times our family drives us up the wall. But no matter what we do, family will always be family, and there's not very much we can do about it.

This is the theme behind Get Real by Betty Hicks (book #71 of 2009), a young adult novel that explores the concept of family.

The neat freak Dez feels ill at ease with her eccentric, messy and geeky family, while her best friend Jil feels constricted by her affluent, cultured and picture-perfect parents, and both would have loved nothing more than to switch places. Jil, an adopted child, and grabs at the opportunity to meet her birth mom and sister, and Dez cannot understand why Jil is so eager to trade in her perfect life.

I actually just mooched this book from a local moocher and it was one of those filler mooches that I made to help the owner economize on shipping (2-mooch minimum).

While there was nothing really outstanding about the book, it wasn't half bad, I was actually amused at Dez's bewilderment towards her Rennaissance poetry-quoting dad, muumuu-loving scientist mom, and disaster-prone younger brother. I think this is something everyone goes through, that moment of incredulity when you actually wonder if you come from the same set of genes as the rest of your family.

I like how it tackles family issues realistically, and how it is a fresh and healthy voice in contemporary young adult literature, which I'm afraid right now is oversaturated with skanky novels and empty special effects.

Plus points go to the cover design also, its seventeen-style treatment is very appealing to the age group for which the book is intended.

***
my copy: hardcover with dustjacket, local mooch

my rating: 3/5 stars

Idyllic Ibbotson

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 07 May 2009 02:45:00 +0000

(I'm baaack! Please bear with me as I get through the backlog of reviews.)

I actually started reading Eva Ibbotson's children's books -first - Which Witch?, The Island of the Aunts, The Secret of Platform 13, The Haunting of Hiram, Dial-A-Ghost, etc., and really enjoyed them. Her children's books are crisply British, and often involve supernatural creatures, and they're humorous and delightful. I'd have to advise you to read them separately and far between, though. There comes a point when you've read so many of her ghost stories that they tend to feel like you're reading the same story all over again.

My Eva Ibbotson stash

I was delighted to discover Eva Ibbotson's book The Star of Kazan, a wonderful, old-fashioned story about the orphan Annika set in the time of the Austro-Hungarian empire. I found a depth and sensitivity to Eva Ibbotson's work that I did not find in her children's books, and I found that I liked this side of her better.

Last year, on my birthday, Dianne gave me a copy of A Song for Summer, my first foray into Ibbotson's romance novels, which I find I really enjoy. I was actually a bit surprised to find out it had a lot of mature content, because I was expecting a typical young adult novel, but they're only classified as young adult; Eva Ibbotson herself considers them as adult novels.

Set in Austria in the 1940's, A Song for Summer is about Ellen, a young girl who grows up in a feminist and liberal household dominated by prominent suffragettes. While her mother and aunts are engrossed in intellectual pursuits, Ellen is the ultimate domestic goddess, who enjoys cleaning, cooking, and household chores.

When Ellen quits university to become a housemother at the Hallendorf School, she finds comfort in tending to wayward children, eccentric teachers, folk artists, a lame tortoise on wheels, and the mysterious gardener Marek.

Marek turns out to be no common gardener, however. Aside from being a part-time fencing, tea Marek is also a world-famous musician who is involved in Resistance groups that have been smuggling Jews to safety.

Marek and Ellen fall in love, but the war is breaking and their lives are in danger, and they must overcome the shadow of war to fight for their love.

Meanwhile, The Morning Gift (book #70 for 2009) is about Ruth Berger, the bluestocking daughter of a Jewish-Austrian professor. When the Bergers flee Austria for the safety of England, Ruth accidentally gets left behind.

Her father's dashing young colleague Quin Somerville finds her alone and bewildered, and offers to reunite Ruth with her family. To ensure her safe passage into England, Quin and Ruth decide to have a marriage of convenience, to be dissolved once they get to safety.

In England, however, measures are in place that prevent them from easily getting a divorce or an annulment. Things get more complicated as Ruth enrolls in Quin's university, and in the class he is teaching.

The more Quin and Ruth try to protect their secret marriage from public knowledge, the more they are drawn to each other, and staying married becomes more appealing.

I'm not exactly sure what I like best about these two books. Like the best romance novels, the theme of Eva Ibbotson's adult novels is "love conquers all," enacted by characters that are often good to be true -- the female protagonists smart and sassy, and the male protagonists noble and heroic -- but lovable all the same. The books remind me of older works of Judith McNaught and Julie Garwood, the historical ones they wrote before they jumped into the whole romantic suspense genre (ugh!), minus the blatant sensuality, which makes it readable for young adults (hence the classification).

Eva Ibbotson is considered a British author, but she was actually born in Vienna, fleeing to England with her family as the Nazis rose to power. I like how her own memories of Vienna and her experience as a refugee weave a lot of sincerity and sensitivity into her work, painting a vivid picture of idyllic pastoral life, making the reader want to live there, goats and all. There's something very lyrical about her books that make reading them so enjoyable.

The books also give a great insight into the lives of people -- not necessarily those that were in the line of battle -- during the war: the academia, craftsmen, musicians, women, and children. The books are full of interesting and quirky characters (other than the protagonists) that really grow on you, whether it's Achilles the tortoise, Professor Chomsky who likes swimming naked on the lake, Verena the scholarly spoiled brat, or the feisty, aristocratic Aunt Frances.

I also like the rich cultural references in the novels, including music (Beethoven, Liszt, Bartok, Chopin, etc), philosophy (Goethe), and especially food and cooking -- all those Nordic recipes!

I am having A Countess Below Stairs angel-mooched from the US and I can't wait to read it, and I am just restraining myself from buying A Company of Swans from Fully Booked, although I don't know how much longer I will last. I want to complete the whole set soon.

***
My copy: A Song for Summer and The Morning Gift, both trade paperback

My rating: A Song for Summer, 4/5 stars; The Morning Gift, 4/5 stars

The Memory Keeper's Daughter

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I'm really not a big fan of the drama genre. I'm escapist by nature, and straight drama (*coughoprahsbookclubcough*) is really not my cup of tea.

This is why there are books in this genre that have been languishing in my TBR, because I'm reluctant to read them and I have to space them out.

I picked up Kim Edwards' The Memory Keeper's Daughter (book #68 for 2009) because it's not very thick and I figured I'd make a dent on this sector of my TBR.

I'd been forewarned by my Flipper friend Islandhopper that the book was highly dramatic, so I was prepared for the worst when I picked it up.

I find that there are some books that are very thick but I can read fast, like The Historian, and some thin books that take me forever to finish, like The Reader. The Memory Keeper's Daughter is somewhere in between, it wasn't very thick, but it wasn't moving quickly enough for me.

The novel unfolds in 1964, and Dr. David Henry's wife Norah gives birth to twins in the middle of a blizzard. The second baby, a girl, has Down's syndrome, and Dr. Henry decides to spare his wife from the difficulty of raising a special child and instructs his nurse, Caroline Gill, to take the baby to a special facility. Caroline is horrified by the institution she brings the baby too and decides to raise the baby on her own. Meanwhile, the pain of losing a child devastates Norah, adding another layer to the wall that has formed in their marriage, caused by the guilt Dr. Henry feels from giving their daughter away.

I think the premise, up until Caroline raising the baby on her own, is pretty interesting, actually. I imagine this sort of scenario did happen a lot in the past, when Down's syndrome wasn't very well understood yet, and I imagine there are still some cases of this happening today.

Mainly it's the melodramatic development of the story that brings it down, because it's a drawn out domestic drama, spanning two decades of misery and emotional lashing in the Henry household, with nothing much happening otherwise.

While it wasn't as bad as I expected -- I even cried a bit at the end, but well, I can cry at the drop of a hat so I've never put stock in a book's tearjerking abilities -- it was nothing spectacular for me either, and I don't think there's a chance that I'll read it again.

***
My copy: trade paperback, mooched last year

My rating: 2/5 stars

P.S. By the time you read this, I'll be in the mountains of Sagada soaking up some fresh air, great food, and a whole lot of culture :) I've advanced some posts, I hope you'll enjoy reading them while I'm gone, and I'll get back to comments when I get back in the city.

I'm not sure it's a good idea...

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 01 May 2009 05:00:00 +0000

... for a rabid book hoarder (such as myself) to get ahold of a book like this: Miller's Collecting Books by Catherine Porter (book # 67 of 2009), which I found in a pile of bargain books at National Book Store.

I'd been reserving this for a nice leisurely read, and finally grabbed it off the TBR pile during the 24 hour read-a-th on, appointing it my last read for the event so that I wouldn't be pressured to rush through it.

The book is a nice hardbound volume with thick, glossy pages and lots of colored photos. Published by Miller's (an antiques price guide that has paved the way for the average person to start collections, or buy and sell with confidence), the book is an excellent guide to all the basic information you need to know about collecting books: the parts of a book, bindings, illustration techniques, printing processes, and finally more than a dozen chapters on what kinds of books you can collect.

The introduction sounds like a call from the mother ship:

"Book-collecting is often associated with academics or dark, musty shops; a secret, inaccessible world for the initiated only -- and maybe this was once so. But today these are myths, and this guide seeks to dispel them. It is surprising how many people buy one or two books, slowly, without necessarily meaning to, begin to build up a collection and get hooked."

I haven't really particular about old first editions as some people are because my allergies are easily triggered by dust and other particle allergens (among many other things) but I realized the books I have today could be worth more in the future, and so I make a solemn promise to dust (achoo!) my shelves more frequently.

Plus, the book validates my irrational habit of upgrading paperbacks into hardcovers that my book club friends have dubbed as "doing a Blooey":

"For some rare books it is possible that the only copy to be had will be in poor condition or imperfect, in which case this will be better than nothing. Generally, however, the rule is always to buy the best copy you can find, and upgrade if you find a better one."

The book also explains why they don't make books like they used to:

"With the increase of mechanization and the arrival of the iron presses used for printing newspapers as well as books, alongside a substantial increase in literacy and demand for affordable printing matter, the quality of most printing declined. Speed, quantity and cost became key factors. Cheaper paper made by machine and full of acid was used, and stereotyping came into use across Europe.."

And how the dust jacket came to be:

"The dust-jacket as protective covering became familiar in the early part of this century, and was initially plain, featuring only the title and author. Publishers soon began to commission artists to decorate these covers, making the books themselves commercially more attractive."

Aside from the rich and interesting information it provides about all kinds of books, this book also incorporates a price guide for some collectible books, and even a built-in bookmark with the conversion rate of pounds to dollars. They're probably worth more today, though, and in Euro, because this book was published in 2001.

The back of the book also showcases a useful glossary of book terms you can throw around so you can sound like those stuffy old gentlemen collecting books!

I got this book for aboutP300 (~$6) , more than I'd usually spend on an impulse buy, but it's one of the best book purchases I've made this year :) Definitely worth every peso.

***
My copy: hardcover with dustjacket

My rating: 5/5 stars

In my mailbox

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:00:00 +0000

I dropped by the post office today, to pick up some packages before I set off to Sagada.

Here's what I got:

1) My third copy of I Capture the Castle, from Heather in Oregon. I am still choosing which one I'll give Mika (my best friend), but I'm keeping two copies for myself... I just love this book!

2) The British kids edition of Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix, which completes my British set. I mooched it all the way from Switzerland, and the moocher Suprig (a real sweetheart!) also sent me some chocolate ladybugs, gummy hearts, and and Ovaltine bar! Yay.

and 3) an amazing smorgasbord from wired_lain in Japan (I just love mooching from her!): two Tarepanda books, a Japanese version of Howl's Moving Castle, a penguin bookmark, a Laputa postcard, a sanrio stationery set, willy wonka fun dip, a goody bag filled with almond and cashew roca and some chocolates, a roller stamp, and... sweet potato Kitkat! Thanks so much!!!!

And here's my version of packing light for my trip to the mountains: no hardcovers! Oh, and I also packed Peter Mayle's A Dog's Life, which I've already started. Hope I can make a dent in these....

I'll be away for the long weekend with some Flipper friends, we're soaking in some food, fun, nature and culture in the Mountain Province, and won't be back til Monday. I doubt there's internet there and phone signal's iffy so I'll be out of reach for a bit. Don't worry, I've advanced some blog posts (including this one) so you'll have something to read over the weekend.

Happy long weekend everyone! Squee!

Guilty Pleasure: Special Edition HP

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 10:00:00 +0000

I couldn't resist. After six months of longingly staring at it on the bookstore shelf, I finally took home my very own copy of the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Special 10th Year Anniversary Edition, using part of my Book Geek winnings.

If you've just "tuned in" to my blog, well, I'm a big Harry Potter fan (^_^), and I collect different editions of Harry Potter books, even in languages I can't read. I haven't counted recently, but I think I'm up to nearly a hundred different Harry Potter books (I know, I know, I owe the readers of this blog a nice long pictorial entry on my collection, but I am still scrounging for time to do that).

While my ultimate dream is the collector's edition of The Tales of Beedle the Bard , I have resigned myself to the impossibility of that for the moment, so this is the next best thing (or so I try to tell myself).

It's practically the same as the hardbound US edition except for the dustjacket, clothcover, and the front matter.

Here are the photos (because I know my Flipper friends have been waiting to see this!):

Harry

dust jacket with special Mary Grand Pre art

Spines

Red clothcover with gilt stars

brand-new frontispiece, also by Mary Grand Pre

My favorite part: an early sketch of Snape by J.K. Rowling

and a little intro by JKR

P.S. Speaking of Harry Potter, here's a hilarious video Dianne showed me yesterday. Enjoy!

***
My copy: hardcover with dustjacket

My rating: 5/5 stars

Book Geekiness

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:27:00 +0000

This is a long over-due post on my Book ~~Gook~~ Geek experience over at Fully Booked last month.

... hehe, here's the new and improved banner:

A bunch of Flipper friends and I joined the Book Geek challenge, our second time actually, because we are suckers for book trivia and free books and a shot at P5000 worth of Fully Booked gift certificates (just under $100).

The actual contest went by in a blur to me, so I'm borrowing my cousin Dianne's (she has her own book blog now too by the way, which recounts bargain book hunting adventures) recap of the event, and also her photos:

Blooey and I arrived at Fully Booked High Street at around 3 PM. We went straight to the fourth floor, only to find the venue completely empty (which was unsurprising, since we were about 30 minutes early). We decided to kill time by browsing around and gazing longingly at books we would never buy at full price. I kept asking Blooey whether she was anxious or excited, and she just shrugged and replied that she was "ok". I think I was a lot more anxious than her.

At exactly 3:30 PM, we returned to the venue and registered. Joel G was already there, together with one other non-Flipper contestant. We were offered frozen raspberry shakes from Bo's Coffee (one of the sponsors of the contest), which we gladly accepted. As we slurped our yummy creamy raspberry shakes, more people started to file into the room. One of them was a strange lady with big curly hair who later introduced herself as Madam Dementia. Turns out she was the host of the contest.

The contest proper was supposed to start at 4 PM, and around this time, more or less 10 contestants had shown up. Other Flippers who participated were Joel G and Marie. As Madam Dementia started to explain the mechanics of the contest, Honey arrived, barely making it past the cut-off time. Due to the brevity of last month's contest, Fully Booked decided to change the rules a bit. The contestants were seated in a circle and were to pick out numbers (corresponding to book-related questions) from a bowl. However, in contrast to last month's "sudden death" rule (i.e. you fail to answer the question correctly, you're eliminated), contestants could either skip the question or pass it to another contestant. Should the person decide to skip the question, he/she has to answer 2 questions correctly in the next round to avoid elimination. If the person decides to pass it instead, he/she selects another person to answer for him/her. But if that person gets the question wrong, both of them will be eliminated. Contestants can only use pass and skip once.

Honey, me, and JoelG

This newly implemented rule was shamelessly abused the moment the first question was asked. The contestant was asked, "What was the crime in 'Crime and Punishment'?" She decided to pass the question to another contestant, who also decided to pass it to the person sitting beside him, who passed it to Joel G, who passed it eventually to Honey. Just imagine the absurdity of the situation - 5 people faced elimination with just the first question. Luckily, Honey - the Classics expert/book lover extraordinaire/Literature goddess - hit the nail on the head by answering with, "Murder". Several people remained in the contest (even several rounds later) thanks to her.

Marie answers a question

Honey's turn

The funny thing was, despite Honey's vast knowledge in all things bookish, she managed to draw questions regarding relatively unfamiliar territory - Harry Potter. Which was ironic because her downfall became Blooey's saving grace. The same was true for Marie, who completely forgot the name of the street where the Dursleys lived. And so, after several nerve-racking rounds of questions about Harry Potter, Little Women (whoever created the questions was obviously a fan), The Count of Monte Cristo (ditto), Narnia, The Little Prince, Jane Eyre, Perfume (where the Flippers all laughed conspiratorially when Blooey was asked, "What is the one thing Jean-Baptiste Grenouille cannot smell?"), chick lit, popular thrillers, Pulitzer Prize winners, authors' initials, pseudonyms and what not, Blooey and Honey made it to the Top Three.

There was a short break for everyone to catch their breath (the "sudden death" round lasted for about an hour). Afterwards, the Top Three contestants were each given white boards and markers. The rules were simple. Questions would be drawn by the judge and a point would be awarded for each correct answer. Whoever gets five points first wins the contest. The first question was drawn, and to Honey's horror and Blooey's delight, again, it's Harry Potter-related (What was Lily Potter's maiden name?). For the first round, only Blooey gets it right. The next question was about E.B. White, which all the contestants answered correctly. Another Harry Potter-related question pops up, (What is the title of J.K. Rowling's latest book?), which Blooey and Honey answer correctly. The final question, as luck would have it, was about Twilight. (What was the name of the book that was most often mentioned in Twilight?) When Blooey and Honey revealed their white boards, they had different answers. Honey answered, "Pride and Prejudice" and Blooey went for "Wuthering Heights". In the end, Blooey had Heathcliff to thank as she was declared Book Geek of the month.

Lily Evans!

Tales of Beedle the Bard

I really wasn't sure, but the gamble paid off!

Checking my answers...

The prize consisted of Fully Booked GCs worth P5,000, Outback GCs worth P750, plus a random book. Other contestants were also given random books as consolation prizes. Pictures were taken and congratulations were given out as Blooey was now eligible for the Book Geek finale this November. Meanwhile, Madam Dementia invited the other contestants to join next month's contest, as they were all still eligible to win.

with Madame Dementia

With Beth and Honey, who were in the top three with me

Book geek!

There you go. The final competition is in November, hopefully I can cram more book trivia in by then.

Hahaha, I was so indebted to Harry Potter, I used part of my book geek winnings to buy another book for my collection. Watch out for tomorrow's post :)

Some vague ramblings...

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 22:00:00 +0000

In my last entry, I talked about my growing pop-up collection. This time, I’m reviewing two illustrated novels that are part of my growing illustrated novel collection: The Secrets of Pistoulet: An Enchanted Fable of Food, Magic and Love; and the Legend of Villa della Luna: The Sequel to the Secrets of the Pistoulet (books #65-66 of 2009); both by Jana Kolpen (text and illustrations) and Mary Tiegreen (design).

the books, in their slipcases, with "peekaboo" windows

I discovered the books in Amazon, looking for illustrated novels, and I added them to my BookMooch wishlist until I was eventually able to mooch copies from two different users some several months apart last year. Book 2 arrived first and I shelved it until I got a copy of the first book, and so I wasn’t able to read them right away.

I was actually very excited to read the books because they were so pretty from the outside, with their own cardboard slipcase and a “peekaboo” window that showed a teaser portion of the back cover (see photo above).

actual book covers

But as I turned the pages of the first book (my copy happens to have an inscription made out to a certain Ed, with the scrawling signature of Jana Kolpen underneath), I had a sinking feeling that the book wasn't what I hoped it would be.

The Secrets of Pistoulet is set in the southwestern French countryside (my second favorite setting, after Venice), in a “very special farm” known as Pistoulet, where all who visit “leave with their hearts and minds transformed.”

The story, done in the style of “Griffin and Sabine,” (it claims on the back portion of the slipcase) revolves around a certain “Mademoiselle J,” a guest who is said to be recovering from heartbreak and experiences Pistoulet’s magical healing powers. Interspersed with the narrative are recipe cards for different potages for a variety of functions, e.g. spirit, strength, heart, passion, etc.) containing real recipes that you can try out for yourself, fold-out letters that come in their envelopes, and even handwritten cards.

In the same manner, The Legend of Villa della Luna picks up where the first book leaves off, but is located in Italy, and is the continuation of Mlle. J’s journey to self discovery.

It was difficult for me to get into the book for two main reasons.

First, while the covers looked good, the inside pages were a hit-and-miss for me. The text (which is in a hard-to-read calligraphic font) gets lost in a page that is cluttered with patterned backgrounds, elaborate borders, photos, and spot illustrations (i don't really care for her watercolors), and sometimes the pages are downright garish or kitschy.

Book 2 is marginally better-designed than the first, but still not enough to redeem itself, much less the series. Granted, the books were published in 1996, but good design should be timeless.

And second, I just found the content hokey. I mean, I’m all for magic, food, love, but the books were like a hippie dream and I just couldn't buy it. Nothing much happens in the story, just a lot of vague rambling thrown in with some new age philosophy. Sigh.

Nevertheless, because they're still illustrated novels, the books are staying in my collection, and I might try a recipe or two one day, just to see if it really works.

***
My copies: both hardbound in slipcase, both mooched from the US.

My rating: Book 1 2/5 stars; Book 2 3/5 stars

Pixie Hollow Pop-up

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 03:00:00 +0000

I’ve been oh-so-slowly building up my collection of pop-up books because elaborate paper engineering is fascinating, but the books are so expensive that I rarely get a chance to acquire them (er, translation: never full price; mostly chance finds at bargain stores, and not brand new).

Pixie Hollow Pop-up (book #64 of 2009) is the latest addition to my small pop-up collection, composed of Pirateology, Vampyre, Mommy?, Dr. Seuss Pops Up, and Alice in Wonderland Pop-up.

I’m not a big fan of fairies or pixies because I find them capricious and not very likeable, but Triccie knew I just started collecting (her own collection is amazing!) and she had an extra copy so she reserved it for me for mooching (gosh, a lot of my prize finds are from Triccie!!!)

Storywise, Pixie Hollow Pop-up is typical Disney – fairy fluff, and very few words in total, but it’s a good example of the recent trend of fairly complex pop-up books (and other children’s novelty items) in the mainstream.

I guess it’s also a sign of the times that it takes so much more to hold a young reader’s attention these days, but even as an adult (and an illustrator), it’s hard to resist the visual appeal. Of course the costs of producing such a complex structure are equivalent to hefty price tag, but the craftsmanship is just amazing, although it's not as artsy and is more commercial than Robert Sabuda's books.

I remember the pop-ups when I was younger: mainly flat, 2 dimensional layers that moved from left to right or up and down, or had little surprises when you pulled the tab or lifted the flap.

Now they’re like paper sculptures that fold completely flat but come alive as you turn the page, literary popping out of the book. Now that’s pop-up!

Of course the grand dream for the Filipino children’s illustrator (i.e. me) is that publishers would invest in producing novelty books for kids, but the market is just too small and the purchasing power too weak, so I guess it will still be some time before we see any of them out. Jomike’s Dinosaur pop-up book is a good start, though.

I know our local publishers would like nothing more than to come up with the best books for kids that they possibly can, but the practicality of keeping the books affordable for the average Filipino is a big factor. Our local children’s books more than make up for it in content, with high quality (and bilingual!) stories and illustrations, though, and I’m glad that the local children’s books industry has grown the way it has over the years.

***
My copy: hardbound, mooched from Triccie

My rating: 4/5 stars

Flippers go TagLish

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 06:18:00 +0000

Finally, the much-awaited Flips Flipping Pages April Book discussion successfully took place, after weeks of preparation, coordinating with National Book Store, Anvil, and the staff of Ricky Lee to mount this memorable event featuring the book Para Kay B.

It was a great discussion, revealing juicy secrets (please, let's keep everything in confidence!) among the attendees, discussing which chapters we liked best from the book, love, character stereotypes, colloquialism, and Filipino reading habits.

The highlight of the event was getting to meet the author, the famous Filipino scriptwriter Ricky Lee, who fast became a Flipper favorite because of his friendly and engaging personality, candidly answering our questions, and showing genuine interest in what we thought of his book, as well as FFP activities, even the book swap, and BookMooch!

I also think everyone was able to gain better appreciation for the book after being able to discuss it with fellow book club members and with Ricky Lee himself.

Ricky Lee was also kind enough to sign our books, with special dedications for everyone -- yup, we compared messages at the dinner buffet at Thai Kitchen!

Here's mine:

We capped the night off with dessert and chitchat at Cafe Breton.

It was another great book discussion for FFP and I can't wait for the next one!

More photos here: http://flipsflippingpages.multiply.com/photos/album/42/Flippers_Meet_Ricky_Lee
and here: http://flipsflippingpages.multiply.com/photos/album/41
and here: http://flipsflippingpages.multiply.com/photos/album/40

Surviving the Big C

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 14:00:00 +0000

Some unexpected circumstances gave me the privilege of attending a book launch today, and when I got there, I was surprised to find the book was about a topic that (unfortunately) hits close to home: cancer.

As my friends would know, my dad passed away of colon cancer more than thirteen years ago (right before I turned eleven), and that part of my life went by in a blur because I didn't really understand what was happening; I didn't want to believe my dad was sick. Cancer was a like a death sentence then, and every night I made a prayerful bargain with God that I'd be a very good girl if only He wouldn't take Papa away.

We spent so much time in different hospitals that I developed a phobia for them, and I got so traumatized by the whole ordeal that I began developing psychosomatic symptoms, like running a continuous fever every so often, for no particular reason.

Anyway, I meant to browse through the book Surviving Cancer: Stories of Hope by Singaporean oncologist Ang Peng Tiam (published locally by Anvil), but I ended up reading from start to finish even before the meal was completely served.

Dr. Ang Peng Tiam (who was present at the press conference -- sorry, did not have a cam so no photos), is a senior consultant and medical doctor at the Parkway Cancer Centre at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore. Surviving Cancer is a collection of anecdotal cases that Dr. Tiam has handled, touching on different cancer cases and how he treated them.

According to Dr. Tiam, "Cancer is not about death, but about living. I want to spread a message of hope, for patients to believe that they can get well, and to seek treatment."

Surviving Cancer (book #68 for 2009 -- bumped up the review because the book was lauched today, will get back to books 63-67 later; also book 12 for diversity challenge - science), while not exactly Chicken Soup for the Soul, is very interesting and candid (for a serious subject) without being unrealistic, and very readable despite the detailed discussion of various medical conditions and treatment options. There are also very graphic photos that made me lose my appetite but were very good in illustrating how effective cancer treatment can be.

I like Dr. Tiam's psychosocial approach to treating cancer: giving the best possible support for cancer patients so they can have a good life, no matter how long or short the duration would be.

I also liked the chapter devoted to alternative treatments, because Filipinos are so fond of alternative medicine. He states that while patients should first and foremost seek conventional medical treatment, alternative medicine can be used to supplement the treatment as long as it does not pose harmful side effects. He cautions against alternative treatments that discourage all forms of medical procedures, e.g. an alarming case of a "wellness spa" that locks you in for a month and feeds you 150 tablets a day and tells you your cancer will grow/worsen before disappearing completely.

At the end of the book, there is a very useful checklist of signs and symptoms revised from the American Cancer Society, which may not be cancer but should be brought to your doctor's attention: sores that don't heal, a lump in the breast or other parts of the body, unusual bleeding, change in bowel habits or bladder functions, recent change in a wart or mole, indigestion or difficulty in swallowing, nagging cough or hoarseness, and problems with hearing.

It's very good reading for cancer patients and their families, and even local oncologists I think, who can pick up a thing or two from Dr. Tiam's methodology. I'm actually passing the book on to a friend who will have great use for this right now, and I hope this helps the family get through this trying time.

The book is available at National Book Store branches nationwide, approx. P360 (?).

***
My copy: trade paperback, to be passed on

My rating: 5/5 stars

Reading in TagLish

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 01:43:00 +0000

The fourth book I read during the 24-hour read-a-thon is Para Kay B by Filipino scriptwriter Ricky Lee (book 63 of 2009, book 11 of diversity challenge- FFP book discussion selection), the assigned reading for April for my book club Flips Flipping Pages, which will hold the discussion tomorrow (which prevents me from attending Dianne's graduation party, but I'm really looking forward to the discussion).

Even before this book was chosen for discussion, I was meaning to get a copy because all the storefronts of National Book Store (to my international readers, NBS is the biggest book store chain in the Philippines) had a poster of the book and I was really intrigued by the full title, which reads: Para Kay B (O, kung paano dinedevastate ng pag-ibig ang 4 out of 5 sa atin) which roughly translated is: For B (Or how love devastates 4 out of 5 of us).

The novel, written in TagLish, a combination of Tagalog (a dialect which is the basis for the national language Filipino) and English, is comprised of five different love stories: a) Irene and Jordan (who made a childhood promise to marry her and then disappeared from her life); b) Sandra and Lupe (who happens to be her brother); c) Erica (who is from the love-less island of Maldiaga) and Jake (the son of the woman who takes Erica under her wing); d) the widow Ester and her maid Sara; and e) the voluptuous Bessie and the young, naive Lucas. The stories appear to be unrelated until the last few chapters, which reveal the link that binds them all.

Filipino was one of my better subjects in school (even in college when Filipino class was quite difficult), but reading this was harder for me than I anticipated because I haven't read anything with this much Tagalog in a long time. To my non-Filipino readers, Tagalog (and Filipino) and the rest of the local dialects in the Philippines are read phonetically (sounded out syllable per syllable), as opposed to English, where words can be recognized on sight.

The second part I had difficulty with is the structure of the novel -- no quotation marks. Quotes are mostly narrative, although there are some dialogues that read as a script. I have always had trouble reading novels that are straight narration (or with little dialogue) because I get bored, and when my concentration slips the text tends to meld together in my mind and I get lost reading. Perhaps it's his background as a scriptwriter, or an intention to defy the conventional structure of the novel, but it took awhile before I got used to it.

During the readathon, the infernal heat was also driving me crazy so I had to haul my patootie to the McDonalds a few blocks away so I could concentrate.

The voice was also an acquired taste for me. When I read, I usually hear the narrator's voice in my head (which I used to think was strange, but my Flipper friends tell me they do it too), and I hear a different pacing of the words for every book, and the voice and accent vary with the narrator (yes, Harry Potter in a British accent). I found Para Kay B too talkative, like the narrator was trying to get out so many words all at once, and I sensed a shrillness to it that grated on my nerves at some points in the book.

I liked the statistics proposed by the title, hahaha, because so far I've always been in the 4 out of 5 (loooooong story, and never mind) and I think a lot of people will agree with the statistic. In his end note, Ricky Lee states how (paraphrased) he wants to be read by everyone -- the people riding the mrt, those watching over loved ones at the hospital, parents putting their kids to sleep -- and not just his fellow writers or literature students. Love (or the absence of love) is a universal theme that most anyone can relate to, and Lee's use of TagLish makes it more accessible to the average Filipino.

*Spoiler alert: do not read beyond this point if you plan on reading the book. Am writing about the resolution because a lot of my readers probably won't get to read the book, seeing as it's written in TagLish. I was contemplating writing this entry in TagLish like some of my Flipper friends but checking my stats, I found that only 41% of my readership is located in the Philippines, and I didn't want to deprive them from reading this entry*

I did perk up later in the book when one of the characters (not Ricky Lee) turns out to be the writer of the five stories mentioned above. The stories are not resolved in their respective chapters, and are left hanging because of the writer's (the character who is the writer, and not Ricky Lee) belief that 4 out of 5 love stories do not get a happy ending.

As the writer looks over his first draft, the 5 female characters suddenly appear in front of him, and they are disgruntled about the lack of resolution in their stories. They question his integrity and skill as a writer, fight among themselves, and even present the writer with a demand letter because they don't want to be part of the 4 out of 5 statistic.

The character-talking-to-author ruse is a popular for stories about authors or illustrators, but I still found this to be the most enjoyable part of the novel because it was so funny in TagLish.

Finally, the writer issues his own demands -- that the characters not pop up from out of the blue, that he write the story that he wants to tell, that he has the right to edit or revise as he chooses, and that the final say is his.

But he does change his mind about the story, and revises his draft to a conclusion that would satisfy both himself and his characters. He also realizes the difference between writing and real life, (paraphrased) how the writer has the power to change everything even after he's written the story down -- the bad changed to good and the tragic ending made happy -- while in real life, that's it, no revisions (I like this passage a lot).

Towards the end of the novel, he brushes off his theory on love, stating that theories are for insecure people, but he backtracks, posing the question, who isn't insecure when they're in love?

Edit at 11:24 pm: Am clarifying why I like this last part (more than the rest of the novel) after reading Gege's review because I realized I didn't elaborate on this aspect to the story.

My reading of the novel is that it's an attempt (albeit it comes off a bit contrived, very movie-ish) at postmodernism, defying the traditional structure of the novel: one of the characters turns out to be writing the story (but is not the author), the characters become self-aware (that they're characters of the story), voice out exactly what they think of the story (and attempt to vote off the writer) and have a hand in manipulating the outcome.

As the Flippers well know, I like postmodernist techniques in books (whether it's picture books or novels) and I was pleasantly surprised to find it in this book because I wasn't sure I was going to like it.

Para Kay B wasn't exactly my cup of tea, but in the end I enjoyed it, and I'm glad the discussion moved it up my reading list. I'm looking forward to discussing it tomorrow and meeting Ricky Lee in person.

One last, a drawing I made for the journal (token) we're giving Ricky Lee at the discussion tomorrow. Will post some photos of the event in another entry this weekend :)

***
My copy: paperback, from NBS Bestsellers (10% discount from Anvil). Just a little rant: the binding is terrible, it's glued at the edges and then stapled down, and the binding was giving way even before I read the book.

Oh, and props to INKie Ivan Reverente for the great illustrations, and I'm glad he joined us at INK this year.

My rating: 3.5/5 stars

Once upon a time, it was a dark and silly night... (Little Lit Roundup)

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 02:59:00 +0000

and I found myself with two great graphic anthologies!

The Little Lit series is a set of comic compilations for kids, edited by the great Art Spiegelman. I have two of them, because I lucked out on new copies at bargain prices -- Folklore and Fairy Tale Funnies (from the NBS Book-sak sale, P200) and It Was a Dark and Silly Night (from the Book Sale warehouse, P170). I decided to read them for the 24-hour read-a-thon because they were easy to read and I wanted to get some variety in my read-a-thon books.

When I first saw the Little Lit books, I was literally agape at their visual impact -- it's a smorgasbord of creative juices from an amazing roster of top-caliber cartoonist and children's book artists. Even now that I've had the books for some time now, I still thumb through the pages with reverence. It's like holding an art gallery in your hands!

Revealing the actual stories would take away the fun from reading the Little Lit books, so let me just touch lightly on them, so you have an idea of what's inside.

Folklore and Fairy Tale Funnies (book #61 for 2009) showcases a humorous collection of old and new story selections from different parts of the world, told through comics.

Aside from Spiegelman this book includes the works of Barbara McClintock, Chris Ware, Kaz, J. Otto Seibold, William Joyce, Bruce McCall, David Macaulay, and many more.

My favorites from this book include Barbara McClintock's leonine version of the Princess and the Pea, the reprint of Walt Kelly's (of Pogo Fame) 1943 comic The Gingerbread Man, Art Spiegelman's hilarious Prince Rooster, Claude Ponti's The Enchanted Pumpkin and Chris Ware's interactive Fairy Tale Road Rage boardgame.

My second Little Lit Book is It Was a Dark and Silly Night... (book #62 for 2009), this time a showcase of imagination, with different comic stories that take off from the starting phrase "It was a dark and silly night... ."

This time, the masterminds are not only comic book artists and children's book illustrators, but also novelists such as Neil Gaiman and Lemony Snicket.

My favorite selections from this book include Lemony Snicket and Richard Sala's hilarious story about a girl and the Yeti, J.Otto Seibold and Vivian Walsh's penguin treasure story, and Patrick MacDonnell's moon story.

I still lack Strange Stories (my cousin Dianne has this one, though, I must borrow it sometime) and the Big Fat Little Lit collection. Hopefully I'll get lucky and find bargain copies again for my Little Lit collection one day; they cost about P800 each at the bookstore.

*All book photos from the Little Lit website.

***
My copies: both hardcover

My rating: both 5/5 stars!

Dahl's Chickens!

noreply@blogger.com (sumthinblue) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:16:00 +0000

I've been a fan of Roald Dahl ever since I discovered he was the brains behind Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (I saw the Gene Wilder movie dozens of times before I found the book in the library in fifth grade) and my favorite Willy Wonka candies that I bought at the school canteen -- Gobstoppers, Pixy Sticks (the jumbo ones!), Runts (I loved the bananas!), Nerds, Dweebs (chewy Nerds), Tart & Tinys, Fun Dips, and SweeTarts -- which led me to believe that Willy Wonka was a real person and that he had a chocolate factory somewhere. In fact, I was devastated (Santa Claus part II) when I eventually found out Nestle was making the candies!

UPDATE: My Roald Dahl Collection

After Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, I was fascinated with The Witches and Matilda, both of which I’ve read dozens of times.

I know a lot of people who were terrified as kids when they watched Angelica Huston’s portrayal of the Grand High Witch in the movie, but I didn’t get to see the movie until it was aired on Disney Channel several years ago, so I never had that problem. Like Roald Dahl himself, I was disappointed that they changed the ending in the movie.

I also liked Matilda, because our school's parents association sponsored the film premiere when I was in sixth grade and I begged and begged my mom to get me a copy of the book after we saw the movie.

Matilda is one of my favorite characters because I could totally relate to her when I was younger– I was the kid who was always at the library until closing time, and I was always happy to be holed up alone in a room with a book. Hahaha, when I was younger I would set up a pencil on a dresser and try to levitate it like Matilda did, attempting to use my eyes to move the pencil and mouthing "Move!" fiercely. Today, I use Matilda as my BookMooch avatar.

To this day, the Grand High Witch and Miss Trunchbull are still in my list of the best book villains.

Other favorites include the BFG (which I only read recently, and I wanted to burst into applause after), George’s Marvelous Medicine, The Vicar of Nibbleswicke (hilarious!), The Twits (also hilarious!), Revolting Recipes and Even More Revolting Recipes.

Having grown up on Roald Dahl books, Quentin Blake also became one of my all-time favorite illustrators. I love how you can look at his work and know without doubt that it's his. Very simple, yet enormous comic appeal!

In college, I started reading Roald Dahl’s short story collections, and I found a whole new – but equally engrossing – way to enjoy his works. The stories are dark and humorous, highly imaginative and original, and always with a surprise twist in the end. It was surprising to find out he could write outside of children’s books, and he is excellent at both writing for kids and for adults.

This isn’t actually a review of Roald Dahl’s books (although it’s starting to veer in that direction), but a review of D is for Dahl (Book 60 for 2009), an A-Z book about one of Britain’s most celebrated children’s authors.

The book is not very thick, but still filled with a lot of interesting factoids I never knew about one of my favorite authors.

I read this book to “cleanse the palate” after reading Silverlock during the read-a-thon, and I was laughing from start to end.

Am sharing my favorite entries:

The lamb debacle

Come to think of it, they don't have names!

Heeheehee.

The cutest story ever!

Who would've thought?

***
My copy: trade paperback, mooched from Triccie

My rating: 5/5 stars