Happy book birthday, Alternative Alamat!

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Ever since I started my book blog, I’ve made it a point to read and review local stuff. You know, books written by Filipinos (or even half-Filipinos) even if they are not necessarily set here. I mean, I read so much of the foreign stuff, so it’s just right that I should also read (and write about) things from my homeland. It’s not just about loving your own, but also because I think we have a lot of good stuff out there but people just need to know about it.

So with that, I am very excited to blog about Alternative Alamat: Stories Inspired by Philippine Mythology, which is out today! :)

Alternative Alamat

Philippine mythology is full of images that ignite the imagination: gods of calamity and baldness, of cosmic time and lost things; the many-layered Skyworld, and weapons that fight their own battles; a ship that is pulled to paradise by a chain, and a giant crab that controls the tides… yet too few of these tales are known and read today. “Alternative Alamat” gathers eleven stories, by contemporary authors of Philippine fantasy, which make innovative use of elements of Philippine mythology. None of these stories are straight re-tellings of the old tales: they build on those stories, or question underlying assumptions; use ancient names as catalysts, or play within the spaces where the myths are silent. What you will find in common in these eleven stories is a love for the myths, epics, and legends which reflect us, contain us, call to us–and it is our hope that, in reading our stories, you may catch a glimpse, and develop a hunger, for those venerable tales. “Alternative Alamat” also features a cover and interior illustrations by Mervin Malonzo, a short list of notable Philippine deities, and in-depth interviews with Professors Herminia Meñez Coben and Fernando N. Zialcita.

The digital edition of “Alternative Alamat”, co-published by Flipside Digital Content, may now be purchased for US$4.99 at the Amazon.com Kindle store and for PHP235.00 at Flipreads.com, and will soon be available at the Apple iTunes and Barnes & Noble Nook stores.

I’ve been hearing/reading about this for a long time now, from the Rocket Kapre blog and through its editor, Paolo ((Who is celebrating his birthday today, too — Happy birthday!)) and it’s really cool to see it out in the world now. And the release is just timely because I still need to buy presents for some friends, and this is the perfect one to give for them. :)

You can read an introduction to the contributors and an overview of the stories included in the anthology here, and also some interviews of the authors. There’s also a spotlight on the book (and the editor!) up at the Flipside blog if you still need more info. :)

Now, to finish reading those books I have lined up so I can get started on this. :)

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In My Mailbox (21): Sales and Komikon

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In My Mailbox is a weekly book meme hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren, where bloggers post about what books received that week, be it via  mailbox, library or store. I wasn’t expecting to write an In My Mailbox post this week, but three things happened:

And so, I ended up with these:

  1. The Song of the Quarkbest by Jasper Fforde (Fully Booked) – Aaron told me last week that this book was already available in Fully Booked, just on the same day I wrote a Want Books post about it. I had a copy transferred while making a personal deal with myself to catch up to quota before it arrived. And I just that. I cannot wait to read this. :D
  2. Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis (Fully Booked) – I borrowed a copy of this book from my friend RE early this year and I loved it. He told me that if I see a copy of this, I should grab it immediately. I saw one and grabbed one. :) I can reread this book anytime I want now, yay!
  3. Filipino Heroes League Book 1: Sticks and Stones by Paolo Fabregas(Komikon) – I already bought a copy of this months before which I lent to my brother and is currently missing. Anyway, yesterday I got to meet the author, Paolo Fabregas, at Komikon, so I bought another copy so he could sign it. And he remembered my review, too, so yay!

    My FHL copy signed by the author :)

  4. High Society by Paolo Chikiamco and Hannah Buena (Komikon) – Of course I had to get a copy of this, after reviewing it just recently. :) Dibs on a pretty special colored cover because of that review too. Thanks Pao! I had it signed by him, but not by Hannah because we don’t know how she looks like and so we weren’t able t “stalk” her during Komikon. :( Maybe next time, then. :)

    Signed High Society

  5. Tabi Po by Mervin Malonzo (Komikon) – We were hanging by the Flipside booth talking to Honey when she plugged this comic to us. It was the black and white version, and it seems pretty scary given the illustrations shown in the colored version in the iPad. Eep. Still, it looks interesting (and it was only P30, so why not buy, right?) If you’re more of a colored comic person, you can buy a copy from Flipreads.com :) I hope to read and review this sometime soon.

    Signed!

And being a Trese fan, I cannot pass up something like this:

Signed glossy Trese poster in plastic case :)

It’s so pretty. :) Actually, we call it a placemat because it kinda looks like one. But this is going on my wall, once I’ve organized my room. Gotta love the detail in this one. :)

And there goes my week. Before I reward myself with anything else, I must get to 50,000 words on my NaNoWriMo novel first. Onward!

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In My Mailbox (20): Where did all these books come from?

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This is me catching up on a couple of weeks of In My Mailbox posts again. It’s always more fun to post when you have more books to post about, right? :) Plus, I was out of town last weekend and I was just too exhausted to take photos and come up with an IMM post. Anyway, so many books in the past weeks — even I am surprised at my stash. Look:

Wee~

So, what did we get in the past few weeks?


I attended the launch of the fourth (and much-awaited!) Trese graphic novel at Robinsons Bestsellers two weeks ago. I’m not really a graphic novel person, but I loved Trese and I’ve been waiting for the fourth book ever since I finished all three a few months ago. :) The event was a success if you were to judge only with the number of people who attended (dress code was black, apparently :P). I do think it was an overall success because not only was it a full-house event, but also we got our books signed. :)

Continue Reading →

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In My Mailbox (19): Weak-willed

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So this week was a little crazy as far as I was concerned. Monday to Tuesday had us cowering in the midst of Typhoon Nesat, the strongest typhoon we’ve had this year. Wednesday to Saturday had me running on 12 hours of sleep all in all, with shift adjustments and reunion dinners and friend’s weddings…no wonder I feel so tired until now.

But anyway, there shouldn’t have been any reason to make an In My Mailbox post today, but then I realized that I was kind of a weakling when it comes to new and well-reviewed books by several friends and trusted bloggers. So, when I had the chance to visit Fully Booked this week to look for a wedding gift for my friend, I chanced upon this:

Daugther of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor...and a new bag behind it. :D

It was a lone hardcover copy in the branch near my office. And I’ve been curious about his book after all the glowing reviews around me. I debated for about five minutes before finally picking it up, and walking straight to the cashier and making my purchase.

*hangs head* I know, I am weak. But…I just couldn’t leave without it!

Okay, I don’t regret it at all. :P I scanned the first page and I almost didn’t want to put it down…but I promised myself I’ll start reading this once I finish reading my first Required Reading book for October. I hope I find it as good as everyone else did. :)

P.S. The new bag behind the book was a purchase from Paris that only got to me last Friday. Hello new bag. :)

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