Pictures of Book Contract Signing Cecilia and USC Press

The University of San Carlos Press of Cebu will be publishing my book, OUT OF CEBU: ESSAYS AND PERSONAL PROSE. Here are a few pictures taken during the contract signing. The book should be done in 2-3 months, although the formal launching or celebration won't be until I come back to the Cebu for Sinulog 2012, God Willing.

The pictures show me with Father Miranda, and Dr. Jobers Bersales (in red).

When the Rainbow Goddess Wept -Discussions

DISCUSSION OF WHEN THE RAINBOW GODDESS WEPT (by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, University of Michigan Press)

Thursday, February 17
7:30 to 9:00pm
Skokie Public Library Book Discussion Room
Registration is required

Thursday, February 24
12:30 to 1:30pm
District 219 Administrative Office
7700 Gross Point Road, Skokie

Thursday, February 24
1:00 to 2:00pm
Oakton Community College Skokie Campus, Room C111

Wednesday, March 2
12:00noon to 1:00pm
Oakton Community College Des Plaines Campus, Library (Lower Level)

Thursday, March 10
7:15 to 8:00am
Niles West High School IRC

Tuesday, March 15
3:45 to 5:00pm
Niles North High School IRC

Summary of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept:When the Rainbow Goddess Wept by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard.
University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor Michigan: 1999

"We had all experienced a story
that needed to be told, that needed
never to be forgotten." (216)

When the Rainbow Goddess Wept is this story - the story of not only Yvonne
Macaraig and her family during WWII; but also the larger story of the
Filipino people and their wartime bravery - all seen through the young eyes
of Yvonne. Before the war, Yvonne's life was ideal. Her cousin Esperanza
was also her best friend; the family cook, Laydan, told her the most amazing
stories about Filipino warrior women, and she adored her father, an engineering
professor. This ideal life is soon torn asunder when the Japanese
invade the Philippines and Yvonne and her family flee to the relative safety
of the countryside. Yvonne is devastated when her whole family does not
stay together, as her aunt, cousin, and grandfather stay behind in Ubec.
Yvonne and her family retreat further and further into the countryside as
they try desperately to stay at least one step ahead of the Japanese. Yvonne,
in order to deal with the wartime horrors that surround her, clings to Laydan
and those stories she tells from Filipino folklore about the warrior women.
These stories give Yvonne the courage she needs to face the losses that war
brings to her family and to her country. Yvonne, like the Philippines itself,
emerges stronger for her trials in this unique coming of age story.

Discussion Questions:When the Rainbow Goddess Wept
1. What is the effect of the story being told from the perspective of a
child? How would it be different if an adult served as the narrator?
2. Why do the traditional legends and stories mean so much to
Yvonne?
3. What is the role of women in Filipino society at this time? How do
the main female characters fulfill and defy societal expectations?
4. What parts do religion, superstitions and faith play in the lives of
the Filipinos in the story?
5. How would you describe the various characters’ attitudes toward
America and Americans? Do these opinions change as the war
continues?
6. In what ways were Yvonne’s and her family’s wartime experience
similar to what others in different countries experienced during
WWII? In what ways was the Filipinos’ experience during the war
unique?
7. How are Yvonne and her family changed by the war? How is the
Philippines?
8. Does the book leave the reader with a sense of hope, despite all the
hardships that the characters had to endure?
9. Why did the author choose the myth of the Rainbow Goddess for
the title of her book?
10. Why is it important for a culture to preserve its legends and
traditional stories?

FIL-AM AUTHORS WRITING, by Libay Linsangan Cantor, The Manila Times

I just found this article that mentions me. Thanks to Libay Linsangan Cantor for this:

Fil-Am Authors WritingThe Manila Times, 7/4/10

With all the buzz about Filipino YouTube singing sensation Charice finally making it to Hollywood’s “it” show of the moment, Glee, I wonder if fellow Pinoys are familiar with other Filipino talents already making names for themselves as Filipino-American authors. If we would take a look at Pinoys getting published in the USA, we might have more pride about our race making it in the land of milk and honey when it comes to the literary field.

Most people might have missed Jessica Hagedorn when she visited Manila a few years ago to promote her latest novel, Dream Jungle, published by Viking Books in 2003. She is more identified with her very postmodern take on the Marcos regime in her novel Dogeaters published by Penguin Books in 1990. While it might sound very political, this novel of hers is a very interesting read, given the very eclectic voices of the characters we encounter in Metro Manila amid the backdrop of many pop culture trappings we Filipinos drown in on a daily basis. Hagedorn was born and raised in the Philippines and moved to San Francisco when she was a teenager. In the US, she also dabbles in other art forms as a poet, performance artist and playwright.


Cecilia Manguerra Brainard is another person that comes to mind when we talk about Fil-Am authors. She is the author of the 1990s novel When The Rainbow Goddess Wept published several times by different international and local publishing houses. She has also authored various creative nonfiction books to her name, and sometimes visits the Philippines to promote them or to give talks during their launch here.
Brainard is also active as an editor of various short story collections and nonfiction anthologies like Growing Up Filipino: Stories For Youth Adults, a collection of how it’s like to grow up as a Filipino in the Philippines and in other parts of the world. I’m proud to have an essay of mine included in that 2003 young adult anthology of hers, and I’m also happy to learn that this anthology is being used in some US schools in teaching children and young adults about Filipino experiences. Brainard was born in Cebu and finished college here in the Philippines before migrating to the USA and settling down there to start a family. She is currently active as a teacher at the Writer’s Program of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Extension.


Another Fil-Am author with an acclaimed novel is Bino Realuyo, author of Umbrella Country published in 1999 by Ballantine Reader’s Circle. The novel is a heartwarming tale about a boy living in an impoverished urban poor community in Manila who undergoes a lot of challenges in his life, including dealing with sexuality issues. The son of a Bataan Death March survivor, Realuyo was born and raised in the Philippines and moved to the US where he made New York his home for many years. He is also a poet, educator and works on various labor rights and human rights issues.

Just these three Fil-Am authors’ achievements alone make us proud that they uphold their Pinoy roots through their literature. Next time, we’ll try to discover more Fil-Am writers writing about our worlds.

ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS, A DUGTUNGAN NOVEL - by Brainard, Cuizon, Evangelista, Montes, Sarreal

ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS, A Dugtungan Novel
by Cecilia Brainard, Erma Cuizon, Susan Evangelista, Veronica Montes, Nadine Sarreal

Anvil Publishing, 2010

For copies, contact ANVIL (www.anvilpublishing.com)

email: anvilpublishing@yahoo.com

The novel should be available at the Manila book Fair, Sept. 15-19, 2010. The novel is suitable for high school and college students, as well as the general public.

"Chick lit with a comfortable dose of smartness and historical verve. Angelica's Daughters celebrates audacious heroines primed by deep passion and fairytale romance! Set in the heat of a 19th-century Asian revolution and what its setting becomes by the 21st Century, Angelica's Daughters beguiles with its mythic splendor, threat of a generational curse, masterful betrayals, and female leads readers can fall in love with.
The story found itself as one writer finished her chapter without consulting the others, and passed it on for the next writer in line to do with as she pleased. The amazing result is a delightful read by five writers who cherish their Hispanic, Filipino, and American cultural roots." ~ Felice Prudente Sta. Maria

This collective and collaborative novel proves that writers share much more than just an interest in, as one of the authors puts it, “the idea of creating something of rare beauty out of nothing at all.” They share a Creative Unconscious that, when working on a common text, comes up with startling and unpredictable imaginative delights and insights. This tale of two women living a century apart (and the women and men in their lives) told sequentially by five women is truly an ensemble performance worth a standing ovation.~ Isagani R. Cruz, Philippine Star

"Part of the pleasure of reading Angelica's Daughters, the engrossing new collaborative novel by five established Filipina writers, is seeing how deftly the authors deal with the challenge of writing in this resurrected literary form. A dugtungan is a genre of Tagalog novel popular early in the 20th century, in which each writer creates a chapter and hands it off to the next, who writes another chapter without direction. The result, in this case, is an ensemble performance that contains something of the exhilaration of theatrical improv. One watches these accomplished authors inventively weave a historical romance, creating gripping heroines and turns of plot, crossing decades and national boundaries, tapping into cultural roots of the Philippines, Spain and America. Reading Angelica's Daughters is a gripping experience.~ Brian Ascalon Roley, Author of American Son (W.W. Norton)

Re When the Rainbow Goddess Wept

I got this email this morning; it makes my day.

Dear Ms. Brainard:
I am a student in Ms. Eve Caram's English 28 class, at LACC. I have had the pleasure of reading your novel, When The Rainbow Goddess Wept, and being an avid reader, I would like to let you know how much I truly enjoyed your book. I am looking forward to reading more of your books, as I am taking English 101 in the Spring. Ms. Caram speaks highly of you, and I am honored to be in her class. Thank you for your time and God bless you and your family. Happy Holidays!!

Respectfully,
A real fan,
________________ (I've deleted the person's name for her privacy)

Jack Pot Question #2 Philippine Literature Category

This is the second Jack Pot Question to literature buffs. Who is the man beside the younger Cecilia?



Hint: He wasn't a sinner.