Monday, April 9, 2012
Easter with the Brainards
Easter pictures:
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Friday, April 6, 2012
More Bee Pictures in the Garden
Bees in the garden!
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Reflecting on the Bikini Girls of STC Cebu
Reflecting on the Bikini Girls of STC Cebu
by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard
It's the kind of summer scandal that a small place like Cebu in Central Philippines loves.
First, pictures of two teenage convent girls in bikinis (reportedly holding a bottle of liquor and a cigarette) appeared in Facebook. The girls, who attend St. Theresa's College (STC), an exclusive girl's school, were barred from attending their graduation ceremony.
The parents of the girls filed a law suit; Judge Navarro of the Regional Trial Court ruled in their favor, saying, it was "un-Christian" and possibly illegal to stop the girls from attending their graduation ceremony.
The girls with their mothers and sheriff went to school on the day of the graduation and guards prevented them from entering. In short, the nuns defied court orders.
Public uproar prompted the nuns to write an official statement, owning up to the fact that they had prevented the students from attending the graduation rites despite the court order, and that they had filed a very Urgent Motion for Reconsideration. The nuns insisted that the students were barred not only because of the bikini photos, but because the photos were obscene, sexually provocative, and revolting; the students had broken school rules when they posted and uploaded "pictures on the Internet that entail ample body exposure." Further, while the students claimed that the pictures were taken at a family picnic, the incidences occurred in a public place - hotel, bar or club.
The Judge apparently spent sleepless nights after the order was disobeyed and finally inhibited himself from the case, saying two of his daughters graduated from STC.
Last I heard, the case is being raffled off to a family court.
As a graduate of St. Theresa's College, Cebu and Manila, I have been asked repeatedly about what I think about this case. My reply has been: "The St. Theresa's nuns are strict. They were strict before and apparently they remain strict now."
I don't have all the details of course and have just read news reports and emails from friends about what happened. If it is true that the bikini pictures were taken at a bar with a girl holding liquor and a cigarette, and this photo was published in Facebook - I can understand how the nuns would prevent the girls from the graduation rites.
St. Theresa's College isn't your regular high school. It's a convent school where students are taught proper values along with the academic subjects. Parents who enroll their children in STC know this; in fact many of them pay extra to put their children in exactly this type of school so their children are "raised properly and taught right from wrong."
Likewise the students in STC know what is expected from them; the nuns make that very clear from Day 1. Their standards are high; they are strict disciplinarians.
If students don't want to follow the rules or style of this convent school, then they shouldn't bothering enrolling there.
I am not "siding" with the school because I am perturbed that the nuns defied the court order;I don't know if their filing the Urgent Motion for Reconsideration made it legally all right to prevent the girls from participating in the graduations rites. Or did the nuns' arrogance exceed legal boundaries this time? Will they be jailed? - I think not. Will they be fined? Perhaps.
I can just imagine the drama that went on that day, with the parents and girls and sheriff arguing with the guards, the other girls and teachers trying to carry on with graduation rites when their minds were riveted on the "outcasts" outside.
This story continues to evolve as I write. At first, the public felt sorry for the 16-year old girls; but when the story surfaced that the picture had been taken in a bar, not a family picnic, people started asking questions. There are always two sides to a story.
I'll write addenda to this article as the story evolves.
~~~~~
The photo is circa 1963 - St. Theresa's girls in San Marcelino
~~~~
COMMENT FROM ARACELI LORAYES:
The nuns aren't just strict; they're stubborn too, when they believe they're right. Just think of the closing of the college department; that created an uproar too, and parents went to court. I understand that now they realize it was a wrong move, since vocations have dwindled. And not just stubborn; tough, too. As social progressives, the STC nuns are battle-hardened veterans of street confrontations.
But I digress. I had a feeling that there was more to the story than meets the eye.
I have a feeling that these girls had a history of flouting school regulations, to which their parents turned a blind eye. Scratch a misbehaving student and you'll find "kunsitidor" parents, or weak parents. The problem is that such parents put their girls in a school like St. Theresa's and then abdicate all parental responsibility, expecting the school to do their job for them. It doesn't work out that way.
I think there was a better way for the school administration to express its displeasure then to call them lewd and lascivious; but on the other hand, if the girls were flaunting their sexuality, they have to expect hurtful words to come their way in a conservative culture like Cebu's.
If the nuns flouted the court, well, they had a precedent in Leila de Lima's flouting of the Supreme Court order to allow GMA to travel abroad. In both cases, the disobedient ones felt that they were doing right, and relied on technicalities.
My fearless forecast: to save face, the parents will huff and puff, and when the furor dies down, quietly withdraw the charges (especially if the nuns had the foresight to print the pictures, and present them in court, which opens them to public scrutiny). And STC's enrollment will jump, due to those parents who think, "That's just the sort of school I want for my girls."
~~~
Read also:
Supreme Court Decision Reached on Bikini Girls of STC Cebu
tags: Cebu, Philippines, Catholic school, education, St. Theresa's College
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
PICTURES PINAY GATHERING, 3/31/2012
Pictures taken at PINAY GATHERING, check back for more information:
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Monday, March 26, 2012
OUT OF CEBU will be launched in California, 3/31/12
PINAY GATHERING
A Celebration of Women’s History Month
Honoring Filipino American Women Authors
A chance to break bread together, talk and bond with other Pinay Sisters in the community.
Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:00 Noon
Pizza Per Tutti, Pizzeria & Tratoria
4143 Lankershim Boulevard corner Acqua Vista
Toluca Lake, CA 91602 Tel 818-760-8200
Join us and celebrate the publication of two new books by our featured authors who will speak and sign their books:
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, author of Out of Cebu: A Collection of Essays and Personal Prose. The book collects 28 essays about the author’s Cebuano ties and her pride of heritage, including colorful accounts about her mother’s family, the Cuencos, a prominent political family in Cebu. The book also includes writings about the author’s life and travels outside of Cebu. She is the author of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept: A Novel; Magdalena: A Novel; Acapulco at Sunset and Other Stories; Philippine Woman in America; Woman with Horns and Other Stories; Cecilia’s Diary, 1962-1968; and Fundamentals of Creative Writing. She has edited four anthologies: Growing Up Filipino, 1 & 2; Fiction by Filipinos in America; and Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America. With Edmundo Litton, she co-edited Journey of 100 Years: Reflections on the Centennial of the Philippine Independence. With Marily Orosa, she co-edited three anthologies: Behind the Walls: Life of Convent Girls; A La Carte: Food and Fiction; and Finding God: True Stories of Spiritual Encounters. With four other authors, she co-wrote Angelica’s Daughters, a Dugtungan Novel.
Ofelia V. Dirige and Aurora S. Cudal, co-authors of Global Filipino Cuisine: Healthy Recipes. First published in 2009 with the late Dr Riz A. Oades, this is a revised and expanded edition of 100 modified choices with nutrient analysis. A much-needed book for healthy eating in the community. Proceeds to cover programs and services of the FilAm Wellness Center/Kalusugan Community Services. 1419 E 8th St., National City, CA 91950. www.WebKalusugan.org / Info@WebKalusugan.org
Other authors who will attend and will sign their books include Ludy Astraquillo Ongkeko, Forty Years of Writing in America; Carina Monica Montoya (aka Carina Forsythe), Los Angeles’s Historic Filipinotown and Filipinos in Hollywood; Roselyn Estepa Ibanez, co-author, Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay; Carlene Sobrino Bonnivier, Seeking Thirst: A Novel and Autobiography of a Stranger and Myrna J. de la Paz (aka Myrna Mulhern), Abadeha: The Philippine Cinderella.
This is an ongoing program of Philippine Expressions Bookshop to reach out to the FilAm community and to increase the visibility of Filipinos in mainstream America.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif $25.00 Lunch, inclusive of drinks, dessert and gratuities. Menu to be emailed upon reservation. Limited seating. The event is also open to male guests. The venue is owned by Pinay entrepreneur Hilda Mauro.
RSVP: linda@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com or call (310) 514-9139.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Lunch with Nadine & Ruth Sarreal
I had a nice "Ladies' Lunch" with writers Nadine and Ruth Sarreal!
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Honey Bees in my Chimney!
I've been concerned about Bee Colony Collapse and have been planting bee-friendly plants and providing water in my garden. The bees liked my place so much they decided to move into my chimney. Seriously, I found around 20 bees in my living room yesterday, clinging to the white lace curtain, trying to get out to the where there's light.
While they are welcome outside, they can't move into my chimney - sorry. I called the Los Angeles Beekeeper's group; the one who answered couldn't help. Before calling a professional bee-exterminator (how sad is that!), we decided to smoke them so they get the message that they've exceeded their welcome. We had logs in the fireplace going most of yesterday afternoon, and again this morning.
Before we did all that, I had a talk with the bees - I love you and you're welcome in my garden, but not in my chimney (and living room). I whispered these words to their bee scouts who had dazed looks in my living room, and I also said this to any other bees in the chimney.
Many of the bee scouts looked like they were dying; I don't know if that was because they had traveled far to find a new home. I picked them up, talked to them, and placed them on a bush outside.
My internet research indicated that bees will send from 10-100 scouts to check out a potential home. If the bees build a hive and have settled for 3 days or longer, it's impossible to move them out, and then you've got to call an exterminator. An internet site suggested smoking them for hours. So that's what I'm doing. So far so good, and I sincerely hope they move. If not, I'll have to call the bee exterminator, which I don't want to do.
I still love the bees and will continue planting bee-friendly plants. I wished I knew how to move the ones in my chimney to a moveable hive.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Maryknoll College '68 Reunion in Heiter Residence
Some pictures taken at a reunion of Maryknoll College graduates in Tina and Andy Heiter's house. Thank you Tina and Andy. Check back, I'll be posting more pictures.
Tina (nee Borja) and Andy Heiter hosted a luncheon at their Winter home in Palm Desert last Saturday, March 10, 2012, attended by 10 Maryknoll College graduates (class col 68) and some husbands. Tina and Andy prepared a wonderful Filipino lunch - pancit, adobo, lumpia, vegetables, meatballs, baked salmon, and the most wonderful Thai mango salad. The desserts were another whole story as well: carrot cake, Hawaiian cake, cookies, fruit.
Marichi Santiago Panganiban and her husband Homer, who live in the East coast, were fortunately in Southern California and were present. The women, some of whom had not seen each other for decades, had a lot of catching up to do. Gathered around the dining table, enjoying Tina and Andy's food, stories and laughter reigned; the men in the patio said their own stories were drowned-out by the women's happy sounds.
I asked Tina Borja Heiter, an accomplished artist who has her artwork in galleries in Zurich, to show me some of her paintings. I was delighted when she talked about her creative process. It was interesting to compare her creative process with mine as a writer. What caught my attention most was the fact that the image is not crystal-clear in her head when she starts a painting, and that the painting evolves to completion.
Those who attended the reunion were (in no particular order): Sim Ciocon, Raul Cruz, Homer Panganiban,Andy Heiter, Patrick McGinley; Marichi Santiago Panganiban, Lucy Adao McGinley, Maria Navarro Ciocon, Med Villanueva, Milette Estrada, Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, Tina Borja Heiter, Esther Quintos Parker, Lorna Cayco Cruz, Chona Saligumba Preston.
Present at the
~~~
Photos:
top, l-r, seated: Sim Ciocon, Raul Cruz, Homer Panganiban; standing: Andy Heiter, Patrick McGinley
Next: l-r, seated: Marichi Panganiban, Lucy McGinley, Maria Ciocon, Med Villanueva; standing: Milette Estrada, Cecilia Brainard, Tina Heiter, Esther Parker, Lorna Cruz, Chona Preston
Next: l-r, seated: Tina Heiter, Med Villanueva, Maria Ciocon, Milette Estrada; standing: Esther Parker, Lucy McGinley, Cecilia Brainard, Lorna Cruz; Marichi Panganiban
Assorted candid shots
Tina (nee Borja) and Andy Heiter hosted a luncheon at their Winter home in Palm Desert last Saturday, March 10, 2012, attended by 10 Maryknoll College graduates (class col 68) and some husbands. Tina and Andy prepared a wonderful Filipino lunch - pancit, adobo, lumpia, vegetables, meatballs, baked salmon, and the most wonderful Thai mango salad. The desserts were another whole story as well: carrot cake, Hawaiian cake, cookies, fruit.
Marichi Santiago Panganiban and her husband Homer, who live in the East coast, were fortunately in Southern California and were present. The women, some of whom had not seen each other for decades, had a lot of catching up to do. Gathered around the dining table, enjoying Tina and Andy's food, stories and laughter reigned; the men in the patio said their own stories were drowned-out by the women's happy sounds.
I asked Tina Borja Heiter, an accomplished artist who has her artwork in galleries in Zurich, to show me some of her paintings. I was delighted when she talked about her creative process. It was interesting to compare her creative process with mine as a writer. What caught my attention most was the fact that the image is not crystal-clear in her head when she starts a painting, and that the painting evolves to completion.
Those who attended the reunion were (in no particular order): Sim Ciocon, Raul Cruz, Homer Panganiban,Andy Heiter, Patrick McGinley; Marichi Santiago Panganiban, Lucy Adao McGinley, Maria Navarro Ciocon, Med Villanueva, Milette Estrada, Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, Tina Borja Heiter, Esther Quintos Parker, Lorna Cayco Cruz, Chona Saligumba Preston.
Present at the
~~~
Photos:
top, l-r, seated: Sim Ciocon, Raul Cruz, Homer Panganiban; standing: Andy Heiter, Patrick McGinley
Next: l-r, seated: Marichi Panganiban, Lucy McGinley, Maria Ciocon, Med Villanueva; standing: Milette Estrada, Cecilia Brainard, Tina Heiter, Esther Parker, Lorna Cruz, Chona Preston
Next: l-r, seated: Tina Heiter, Med Villanueva, Maria Ciocon, Milette Estrada; standing: Esther Parker, Lucy McGinley, Cecilia Brainard, Lorna Cruz; Marichi Panganiban
Assorted candid shots
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Great Reading at AtF(LE)'s 2nd Friday Reading
I had a great time at the 2nd Friday Reading at AtF(LE) in Long Beach. I read from: When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, Vigan and Other Stories, Woman With Horns and Other Stories, and Out of Cebu. The gallery was full, with some people standing in the back. And what an attentive, generous audience! They were with me 100% from the beginning til end of the 1 hour reading I did. Thank you, Audience, and thank you Mike Buckley for inviting me, and to Sarah Miller and all the other organizers of the event.
Going there, I had a mild panic attack because 405 traffic was extremely bad, and I had promised Mike I'd be there at 6:40 p.m. The program was scheduled from 7-9 p.m, and I assumed the reading would go first.
Aside from the horrendous traffic, we took the wrong exit and wasted more precious minutes. Fortunately we did get back on the Freeway, and I was at the gallery before 7 p.m. I was relieved to hear that the reading program wouldn't start until 8 p.m. The wine and cheese reception allowed people to enjoy the live jazz music of Garland Campbell, and to mingle.
At 8 Mike Buckey introduced me and ta-da - I did the one-hour reading to this wonderful audience. They were sad and reflective when I read about Doc Menez in When the Rainbow Goddess Wept and the Black Man in the Forest; and they laughed at Flip Gothic, and laughed even harder when I shared the non-fiction "How I Learned to Make Leche Flan (or How I Met My Husband).
That's really all a performer can ask for - a good audience. When they're with you, you give more, and so the performance becomes better - magical even.
Some friends and I went to dinner afterwards, and I just got back, so time to rest but here are some pictures - Enjoy!
~~
Photos:
top: Guests mingling
next: the Jazz duo
next: Greg and Carlene
next: Loreta, Mike Genelin, Mike Buckley, Lauren Brainard
next: Lyn Buckley, Mike, Cecilia, Ted Buckley
bottom: Lauren Brainard, Elizabeth Allen, Mike Ross, Cathy and Bob from Canada, John Allen, Cecilia Brainard
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Cecilia Brainard Reads her Fiction Tonight, March 9, in Long Beach
Tonight, Friday, March 9, Cecilia Brainard reads her fiction at Long Beach, CA, from 7-9 p.m., 555 Pine Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90802. Do come!
Please join us for an evening with Cecilia Manguerra Brainard. She is fresh off a book tour in the Philippines, and we are so honored that she has made time for us in her busy schedule. She is a fantastic writer and an intriguing woman.
She is the award-winning author of eight books, including the internationally-acclaimed novel, When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, Magdalena, Vigan and Other Stories, Acapulco at Sunset and Other Stories, Philippine Woman in America, Woman With Horns and Other Stories, Cecilia's Diary 1962-1968, and Fundamentals of Creative Writing. She edited four books: Growing Up Filipino I and II, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America. Cecilia co-edited six books, including Journey of 100 Years: Reflections on the Centennial of Philippine Independence; Behind the Walls: Life of Convent GirlsAla Carte: Food and Fiction, and Finding God: True Stories of Spiritual Encounters. She has also written a novel with four other women entitled, Angelica's Daughters, a Dugtungan Novel.
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Check out her website if you want to know more: http://www.ceciliabrainard.com/
About AtC(LE):
Founded by Alicia Adams and Sarah Miller in 2010, and now co-curated with the soon to be world famous Michael Buckley, After the Carnival (Literary Events) is dedicated to promoting the rich literary culture of Long Beach. Aside from hosting events highlighting the accomplishments of local writers and local presses, we enjoy inviting writers and audiences from outside the area to participate in a literary community we think is unique to Long Beach.
About Exhibit [A]:
Exhibit [A] is one of the currently active galleries under the umbrella organization Vayden Roi Galleries. Produced by Evan Kelly and Liza Mitchell, Vayden Roi Galleries is an economic development program in partnership with the Downtown Long Beach Associates. Vacant commercial spaces are used as temporary galleries and event venues. Property owners are provided limited improvements and promotion. Local businesses benefit from increased foot traffic. Residents and visitors are given a cultural destination and downtown amenity.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Angelica's Daughters: A Dugtungan Novel - Advertisement by Student
Take a look at this!
Someone did artwork from a scene in ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS: A DUGTUNGAN NOVEL. How cool is that????
aerobicsalmon.deviantart.com/art/Angelica-s-Daughters-280509205
ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS: A DUGTUNGAN NOVEL
by Cecilia Brainard, Erma Cuizon, Susan Evangelista, Veronica Montes, Nadine Sarreal
Anvil Publishing, 2010
email: anvilpublishing@yahoo.com
"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)
Someone did artwork from a scene in ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS: A DUGTUNGAN NOVEL. How cool is that????
aerobicsalmon.deviantart.com/art/Angelica-s-Daughters-280509205
ANGELICA'S DAUGHTERS: A DUGTUNGAN NOVEL
by Cecilia Brainard, Erma Cuizon, Susan Evangelista, Veronica Montes, Nadine Sarreal
Anvil Publishing, 2010
email: anvilpublishing@yahoo.com
"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)
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Cebuana Trailblazers in Ayala Mall, Cebu
My friend, Lynley Ocampo in Cebu, sent me this email and picture this morning. She was with her nephew, Lautrec, in the Ayala Mall. Her email refers to a picture of mine, part of the Cebuana Trailblazers group, currently exhibited by Ayala Center Cebu and The Cebu Provincial Women's commission to celebrate Women's Month 2012.
Thank you Lynley and Lautrec (who is standing in front of the picture).
<<<<<
Hi,
Lautrec and I were strolling in ayala. Look what we saw? You and some 99 other Cebuanas were named trailblazers. You belong to the first batch, along with my late aunt. Will take better pictures tomorrow.
>>>>>
Thank you Lynley and Lautrec (who is standing in front of the picture).
<<<<<
Hi,
Lautrec and I were strolling in ayala. Look what we saw? You and some 99 other Cebuanas were named trailblazers. You belong to the first batch, along with my late aunt. Will take better pictures tomorrow.
>>>>>
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Cecilia Brainard's New Cover for FaceBook
This is the new cover of my FaceBook Timeline. The cover occupies a large space and to have put my face in there would have been startling; even group pictures are huge. The first cover I put up was a sunset scene taken in Mexico, but I decided that wasn't saying very much about me, thus this image.
I was quite comfortable with FaceBook's old look when they suddenly changed the whole thing, and here I am, trying to figure it out.
I was quite comfortable with FaceBook's old look when they suddenly changed the whole thing, and here I am, trying to figure it out.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Cecilia Brainard Reads March 9, 2012 in Long Beach - more info
YOU ARE INVITED:
Friday, March 9, 2012, 7-9 p.m.
Exhibit A Gallery, 555 Pine Avenue, Long Beach.
Please join us for an evening with Cecelia Manguerra Brainard. She is fresh off a book tour in the Philippines, and we are so honored that she has made time for us in her busy schedule. She is a fantastic writer and an intriguing woman.
She is the award-winning author of eight books, including the internationally-acclaimed novel, When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, Magdalena, Vigan and Other Stories, Acapulco at Sunset and Other Stories, Philippine Woman in America, Woman With Horns and Other Stories, Cecilia's Diary 1962-1968, and Fundamentals of Creative Writing. She edited four books: Growing Up Filipino I and II, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America. Cecilia co-edited six books, including Journey of 100 Years: Reflections on the Centennial of Philippine Independence; Behind the Walls: Life of Convent GirlsAla Carte: Food and Fiction, and Finding God: True Stories of Spiritual Encounters. She has also written a novel with four other women entitled, Angelica's Daughters, a Dugtungan Novel.
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Check out her website if you want to know more: http://www.ceciliabrainard.com/
About AtC(LE):
Founded by Alicia Adams and Sarah Miller in 2010, and now co-curated with the soon to be world famous Michael Buckley, After the Carnival (Literary Events) is dedicated to promoting the rich literary culture of Long Beach. Aside from hosting events highlighting the accomplishments of local writers and local presses, we enjoy inviting writers and audiences from outside the area to participate in a literary community we think is unique to Long Beach.
About Exhibit [A]:
Exhibit [A] is one of the currently active galleries under the umbrella organization Vayden Roi Galleries. Produced by Evan Kelly and Liza Mitchell, Vayden Roi Galleries is an economic development program in partnership with the Downtown Long Beach Associates. Vacant commercial spaces are used as temporary galleries and event venues. Property owners are provided limited improvements and promotion. Local businesses benefit from increased foot traffic. Residents and visitors are given a cultural destination and downtown amenity.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Invitation: PINAY GATHERING: Celebration of Women's History Month
YOU ARE INVITED...
PINAY GATHERING
A Celebration of Women's History Month
Honoring Filipino American Women Authors
A chance to break bread together, talk and bond with other Pinay Sisters in the community
Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:00 Noon
Pizza Per Tutti Pizzeria & Tratoria
4143 Lankershim Boulevard corner Acqua Vista
Toluca Lake, CA 91602 Tel 818-760-8200
Join us and celebrate the publication of two new books by our featured authors who will speak and sign their books.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, author of Out of Cebu: A Collection of Essays and Personal Prose. The book collects 28 essays about the author’s Cebuano ties and her pride of heritage, including colorful accounts about her mother’s family, the Cuencos, a prominent political family in Cebu. The book also includes writings about the author’s life and travels outside of Cebu. She is the author of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept: A Novel; Magdalena: A Novel; Acapulco at Sunset and Other Stories; Philippine Woman in America; Woman with Horns and Other Stories; Cecilia’s Diary, 1962-1968; and Fundamentals of Creative Writing.
She has edited four anthologies: Growing Up Filipino, 1 & 2; Fiction by Filipinos in America; and Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America.
With Edmundo Litton, she co-edited Journey of 100 Years: Reflections on the Centennial of the Philippine Independence. With Marily Orosa, she co-edited three anthologies: Behind the Walls: Life of Convent Girls; A La Carte: Food and Fiction; and Finding God: True Stories of Spiritual Encounters.
With four other authors, she co-wrote Angelica’s Daughters, a Dugtungan Novel.
Ofelia V. Dirige and Aurora S. Cudal, co-authors of Global Filipino Cuisine: Healthy Recipes. First published in 2009 with the late Dr Riz A. Oades,
this is a revised and expanded edition of 100 modified choices with nutrient analysis. This is a much-needed book for healthy eating in the community.
Proceeds from sales of this title will cover programs and services of the FilAm Wellness Center/Kalusugan Community Services which is located at
1419 E 8th Street., National City, CA 91950. www.WebKalusugan.org / Info@WebKalusugan.org
Other authors who will attend and will sign their books include Ludy Astraquillo Ongkeko, Forty Years of Writing in America; Carina Monica Montoya
(AKA Carina Forsythe), Los Angeles’s Historic Filipinotown; Filipinos in Hollywood and Let's Cook Adobo!, a juvenile cookbook; Roselyn Estepa Ibanez, co-author, Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay; and Carlene Sobrino Bonnivier, Seeking Thirst: A Novel and Autobiography of a Stranger.
If you will be unable to attend but would like a signed copy of any of the books mentioned here, you can place your order with:
linda@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com or linda_nietes@sbcglobal.net
This is an ongoing program of Philippine Expressions Bookshop to reach out to the FilAm community and to increase the visibility of Filipinos in mainstream
America. $25.00 Lunch, inclusive of drinks, dessert and gratuities. Menu to be emailed upon reservation. Limited seating. The event is also open to male
guests. The venue is owned by Pinay entrepreneur Hilda Mauro. RSVP: linda@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com or call (310) 514-9139.
----
Philippine Expressions Bookshop
The Mail Order Bookshop dedicated to
Filipino Americans in search of their roots.
PO Box 4201, Main Post Office
Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA 90274, USA Tel (310) 514-9139
www.philippineexpressionsbookshop.com
orders@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com
Join Friends of Philippine Expressions Bookshop in FaceBook
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/linda-nietes/29/558/7ab
Visit the personal page of Linda Nietes in FaceBook
----
"Do not go where the path may lead, go
instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo
Emerson.
We have blazed the trail in promoting Philippine books in America.
2012 marks our 28th year of service to the Filipino American
community. Mabuhay.
PINAY GATHERING
A Celebration of Women's History Month
Honoring Filipino American Women Authors
A chance to break bread together, talk and bond with other Pinay Sisters in the community
Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:00 Noon
Pizza Per Tutti Pizzeria & Tratoria
4143 Lankershim Boulevard corner Acqua Vista
Toluca Lake, CA 91602 Tel 818-760-8200
Join us and celebrate the publication of two new books by our featured authors who will speak and sign their books.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, author of Out of Cebu: A Collection of Essays and Personal Prose. The book collects 28 essays about the author’s Cebuano ties and her pride of heritage, including colorful accounts about her mother’s family, the Cuencos, a prominent political family in Cebu. The book also includes writings about the author’s life and travels outside of Cebu. She is the author of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept: A Novel; Magdalena: A Novel; Acapulco at Sunset and Other Stories; Philippine Woman in America; Woman with Horns and Other Stories; Cecilia’s Diary, 1962-1968; and Fundamentals of Creative Writing.
She has edited four anthologies: Growing Up Filipino, 1 & 2; Fiction by Filipinos in America; and Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America.
With Edmundo Litton, she co-edited Journey of 100 Years: Reflections on the Centennial of the Philippine Independence. With Marily Orosa, she co-edited three anthologies: Behind the Walls: Life of Convent Girls; A La Carte: Food and Fiction; and Finding God: True Stories of Spiritual Encounters.
With four other authors, she co-wrote Angelica’s Daughters, a Dugtungan Novel.
Ofelia V. Dirige and Aurora S. Cudal, co-authors of Global Filipino Cuisine: Healthy Recipes. First published in 2009 with the late Dr Riz A. Oades,
this is a revised and expanded edition of 100 modified choices with nutrient analysis. This is a much-needed book for healthy eating in the community.
Proceeds from sales of this title will cover programs and services of the FilAm Wellness Center/Kalusugan Community Services which is located at
1419 E 8th Street., National City, CA 91950. www.WebKalusugan.org / Info@WebKalusugan.org
Other authors who will attend and will sign their books include Ludy Astraquillo Ongkeko, Forty Years of Writing in America; Carina Monica Montoya
(AKA Carina Forsythe), Los Angeles’s Historic Filipinotown; Filipinos in Hollywood and Let's Cook Adobo!, a juvenile cookbook; Roselyn Estepa Ibanez, co-author, Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay; and Carlene Sobrino Bonnivier, Seeking Thirst: A Novel and Autobiography of a Stranger.
If you will be unable to attend but would like a signed copy of any of the books mentioned here, you can place your order with:
linda@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com or linda_nietes@sbcglobal.net
This is an ongoing program of Philippine Expressions Bookshop to reach out to the FilAm community and to increase the visibility of Filipinos in mainstream
America. $25.00 Lunch, inclusive of drinks, dessert and gratuities. Menu to be emailed upon reservation. Limited seating. The event is also open to male
guests. The venue is owned by Pinay entrepreneur Hilda Mauro. RSVP: linda@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com or call (310) 514-9139.
----
Philippine Expressions Bookshop
The Mail Order Bookshop dedicated to
Filipino Americans in search of their roots.
PO Box 4201, Main Post Office
Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA 90274, USA Tel (310) 514-9139
www.philippineexpressionsbookshop.com
orders@philippineexpressionsbookshop.com
Join Friends of Philippine Expressions Bookshop in FaceBook
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/linda-nietes/29/558/7ab
Visit the personal page of Linda Nietes in FaceBook
----
"Do not go where the path may lead, go
instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo
Emerson.
We have blazed the trail in promoting Philippine books in America.
2012 marks our 28th year of service to the Filipino American
community. Mabuhay.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
A Literary Homecoming for Cebuana Writer, by Jaime Picornell
Jaime Picornell wrote this kind and nice article about the book launch of OUT OF CEBU. Thank you, Jaime! In the picture, Jaime is seated on the far right; picture taken at the Planning Meeting of the Book Launch of Out of Cebu.
by Jaime Picornell
Philippine Daily Inquirer, Sun. Feb. 26, 2012
//lifestyle.inquirer.net/36369/a-literary-homecoming-for-cebuana-writer
It was a cool Sunday afternoon and many did forgo a prolonged siesta to attend a book launching at 2:30 p.m. at Salon Granada of the Casino Español de Cebu. Such a crowd could only be attained by celebrated Cebuano writer Cecilia “Baby” Manguerra Brainard with her ninth title, “Out of Cebu—Essays and Personal Prose.”
The event was under the aegis of the University of San Carlos (USC) Press, represented by university president Rev. Fr. Isidro Miranda SVD, and heritage writer Jojo Bersales, who was first to speak during the commemorative program. He said it was the first time USC Press was publishing a book by Ms Brainard.
The 28 essays in the book are about her family, the prominent Cuenco political dynasty, as well as life in Cebu, in the United States where she has lived since 1969, insights during her travels to different lands, and day-to-day impressions wherever she may be.
Maria Cecilia Cabañes hosted the program in which first to read from the book was Louie Nacorda. He chose “My Grandfather,” a biographical portrait of the author’s grandfather, erstwhile President of the Philippine Senate Mariano Jesus Cuenco.
Mayen Tan read “Death of a Carnival Queen,” which is about the author’s mother, Concepcion Cuenco Mangeurra, Cebu’s Carnival Queen in 1932. Decades after that people in Cebu were still talking about the splendor of her coronation.
Leodenito Cañete chose the first essay in the book “Where Daydreaming Came From.” The autobiographical piece describes the years since the author’s birth to early childhood.
Pia Mercado’s piece was “Diaspora in Italy,” which tells the vicissitudes of a Filipina overseas worker. It has quite a suspenseful plot, thrilling in some parts. The happy ending is an amnesty for TNT workers.
Gavin Bagares had helped drum up interest in the book launch, and he had a part in the program of readings. He chose “Kiki,” whose heroine is the Brainards’ pet cat. He didn’t read all of it, for as he said,” I want you to buy the book and find out how the story ends.”
The readings closed with Fr. Jun Rebayla, who opted for “Museo sa Sugbo—A Story of Hope.” Yes, the article is about the museum, but also that it was once the provincial jail where a maid of the Manguerra family was detained for stealing.
No need for introduction
Now, it was time to introduce Baby Manguerra Brainard who, as Jojo Bersales said, really does not need it. There she sat on a raised dais, a pile of books beside her, ready to sign those autographed copies.
She thanked Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama for his presence, and the USC Press for printing her book, stating that she looks forward to more projects with them. She was most grateful for the large turnout of family, friends, writers, members of academe and media.
About the book, she explained that it was “an accumulation of what I have published, now gathered in one collection. Given the easy flow of her writing, and her keen power of observation, it was suggested that she write her memoirs of life in Cebu, and beyond it.
Perhaps something like her essay on “Leche Flan.” It is a hilarious recounting of how she met the man who’d eventually become her husband, Lauren Brainard. “In 1996,” or was it more like 1967? He was then a Peace Corps volunteer in Maasin, Southern Leyte.
Baby had met Lauren months before he came to Cebu and was hospitalized with a festering wound in his leg. She and some friends (I was among them) went to visit him, and Baby thought of bringing a leche flan made by the family cook, Menggay.
Although she doesn’t say so in the essay, the trembling custard almost fell on the patient, but any way, it was duly tasted and praised. Somehow, Lauren always believed Baby had made it. Lauren left for the US, and some time later Baby met him in San Francisco where he was studying Law.
They fell in love, got married, and Lauren always reminded her about the leche flan she had made for him. “I never said I had made it,” Baby insisted,, but as she tells it in her story, she learned how to make one, with a half gallon tin of Magnolia ice cream (as it used to be in many households of the time).
Also as the story goes, she has treasured the recipe, perfected it even, and learned various versions of leche flan according to how it is made in different countries she has visited.
Lauren and Baby make their home in Santa Monica, California. They have three sons and several grandchildren. Baby comes to Cebu twice a year. First during Sinulog time in January for the fiesta of the Santo Niño. Then for the June 24 fiesta of St. John the Baptist in the old Parian area.
That is where she lives, in the top floor of a building she inherited from her mother. The neighborhood and its lore have inspired her ever since she began writing short stories and novels.
They are somehow interrelated and reflective of incidents that have found their way into the legends of mythical Ubec, which is Cebu spelled and pronounced backwards. “Binali,” as they say in Cebuano.
Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books..
Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized.
Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines.
She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.
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