ALOYSIUSI POLINTAN offers Flash Reviews on
Books by Alice Sun-Cua, Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta, Abel Clerk, Jenny Romero Llaguno, Mark Anthony Cayanan, Conchitina Cruz, Amber Buenaventura Garma, Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz, and Nick Joaquin
Books by Alice Sun-Cua, Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta, Abel Clerk, Jenny Romero Llaguno, Mark Anthony Cayanan, Conchitina Cruz, Amber Buenaventura Garma, Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz, and Nick Joaquin
Flash Book Review No. 24: In Dr. Alice Sun-Cua's melodious, powerful and elegant description of places strange and familiar, this book introduced to us the bejewelled hands of Middle Eastern vendors whose turbans and flowing robes glazed in the eye, the joy of making acquaintances who were at first fellow passengers lost in the rigidity of train schedules in Paris, the enchanting myths and legends behind caves and clouds in New Zealand, and the ever-remarkable color and vibrancy of Jakartan cuisine and interior design. The discovery and revisiting of her Chinese roots, as well as her attempt to illustrate the relevance of Filipino language and customs, brought us readers into the realms of self-examination: of how we know and how proud we are as inheritors of the land's glorious past. Myself not even a fan of touring, biking, hiking and travel in general, was hooked by this collection of essays, having me ponder on the possibility of searching for homeliness over the seas and by trains and planes. "It was these serendipitous turns, these unexpected twists," she mentioned in 'Heart and Soul' "that made the trips more interesting." And I now I long for beauty in the guise of occasional slippages!
Flash Book Review No. 30: A sigh of momentary awe, if there is such an expression, encapsulates my adoration for this book of a gem. Where brilliance of the verse slips between words. Where geometry of desire, bafflement and pain shows off its cuts and edges. Whether it explores Amorsolo portraits or reimagines Bulosan's America Is In The Heart, (given her command of aesthetics and art criticism), Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta's grasp of catching me at my weakest and loneliest points will never lose charm and force. After reading this, I appreciated how flora and fauna---through an introspective, unsurprisingly cosmopolitan eye---could serve as springboard for a mystical kind of lyricism (I don't care anymore about my phraseology) which leads to a remarkable poem. There also sprung the idea that this series of collections is a Song, introduced by the guitar blues, sustained by the arpeggio, and culminated by the gospel cadences of hush and murmur. And in this oneness have I found a possibility: even in the ulteriority and complexity of poetry, the reader can achieve the highest degree of understanding. In his own world. In his own vanity.
Flash Book Review No. 29: Poetry, as the medium of the Self, brings out extraordinary parallels to the fathomless parables and paradoxes of the Bible. And Abel Clerk's italic mind explores the eroticism, violence and quietness of each of the 81 books (including the "Apocrypha") without the attempt to twist or even modify their impetus and core. My favorite segment is that of Paul's Epistles (from 'romans' to 'two thessalonians') which showcase the poet's knack of capturing the reader with his mastery of forms i.e. sestina, pantoums and villanelles, as well as with his concentrated and condensed telling of either a secularly known or an unnoticed story. A speculative, contemporary glance at the most important book in Western culture should not be reduced to a productive act of blasphemy. This must be treated as an attempt to see God in the labyrinths of imagination and in the feats of unsolicited reworkings of the Word. Bibel (Cervisian, 2009) stands for poetry's agency to bring the reader into "the quest of questioning".
Flash Book Review No. 40: It is through art can we express the seat of human desires, one's vulnerabilities and his/her aspiration for strength and fullness. Conchitina "Chingbee" Cruz, whose compelling collection Dark Hours I had the chance to read and enjoy, has without reservation poeticized one's perspectives on seduction, fidelity, marriage, and recovery from the wounds of letting go in Elsewhere Held and Lingered (High Chair, 2010). Whether the persona is the author articulating personal experiences or she formed a plethora of women's voices within a singular voice resonating in all the poems, she succinctly captured the essence of what it means to be strong when weakness "haunts rather than invades" and to be meditative when the fragility of heart "tries to break open and bleeds of withered daffodils". Not to mention the effortlessness in enjambments and delineations in order to arrive at what intends to narrate and illustrate, this book testifies to the impetus of anyone who's bound by the spell of poetry: the after, the aftertaste and the afterthought of words which last and linger in the mouth, in memory. And for this chance of savoring great poetry, like in this one, I will ever be thankful. (Personal favorites among the poems are "Index of last lines", "Marginalia" and "One for the baby, and one more for the road".)
Flash Book Review No. 43: Amber Buenaventura Garma, the daughter of my former head Ms. Maila, had her book of poems published when she was 15. I borrowed a copy from Ms. Adelma Libunao Salvador. This Fossil of a Mind (Philippine High School for the Arts, 2016) beautifully articulates the Self, whose desires and leanings are of Otherness. The representational impetus of her poetry, and that is the conscious effort to become the voice of a generation misjudged by their choices and habits, resonated in every page. Her giftedness, fueled by, as I read each poem, the rhythm of Allen Ginsberg, James Dean, Bob Dylan and Nikki Giovanni, is a testament to the need to recognize in every child at the early stage of his/her life the talent, the intelligence, and the courage to write. Reading the first poem up to the last is a delightful experience with the poet, as I journeyed with her from innocence to awareness of the self and the world, reinforcing in me a hard-earned truth: a life lived to the fullest is not confined in whatever the heart beats for, but in offering everything you do for others, for your loved ones, for those who are prejudiced and unheard. Away from themes of infatuation, friendship and fangirling, each work is a narrative rendered lyrical by the poet's sincerity, discipline and experimentation of the form. Whether the poems centered around the life in a dorm school or reverberated the uncertainty of future for young women like her, what is important is that her art has served its primal purpose. Personal favorites such as "The Rest of My Selves", "Backlight", "Stone Song" and "Reprint" concretized my adoration for her purposeful art. The flourishing of an artist is what I always enjoy witnessing. May this unsolicited review launch her into more readers and supporters.
Flash Book Review No. 55: While I was reading this short but sweet treat, I smiled, laughed, frowned and gazed at every page and at how intricate and how marvellous "being" and "becoming" Filipino is. "You have a high threshold for pain and suffering." We are not aware of our quirks and idiosyncrasies until a book lists these down and leads us into self-assessment and examination of our identity, not only as individual Filipinos but as a collective enamored by the past, rendered baffled by the present, and discomfited yet made ever-resilient by the haste of future. This book of a checklist selected by Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz is a timeless invitation, an ever-relevant engagement to read and reflect on everything that distinguishes us from the rest of the human race. What made this book a more interesting read is its fun multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank items which demand one to answer in order to measure the degree of his own involvement in the pursuit of identity, an identity filled with carefully plastered balikbayan boxes, misinterpreted traffic lights, unshakeable faith in God, and devotion to the perpetuation of virtues of generosity, hospitality and chivalry. Not only did the wonderful illustrations accentuate the impetus of the listing, they also succinctly presented the usual and "truly Filipino" conversations and lifestyles. Read this and find for yourself! On the other side of the coin, this statement struck me and left me alarmed: "You have a high tolerance for corruption and a short, forgiving memory when it comes to history." May this not be a laughable fact. May this be changed into the positive, especially in these times when powers-that-be suppose that they could erase before our faces the painful past and make us believe in their manipulations of the truth. Hope and courage should not be lost on every Filipino striving for a better life and fulfilling his dreams with honor and grace. May the quotidian Filipino head or heart, when cracked open and magnified by circumstances, be found filled with sincerity, passion, discipline and optimism.
Flash Book Review No. 57: In his lifetime, "Dahling Nick" set the bar in stylizing prose, and this bar demanded that every writer had to listen to, and learn from, the sense, rhythm and power of all his prose. I have read some of his widely published reportages, and reading his popular works in fiction made me conclude that Nick Joaquin is the best Filipino writer in English, in a language he wrote with the melisma of Spanish, in a language he beautifully captured by pen or typewriter. The cadence of each line must be the intensity of each click and throb. This knack of Nick must soar to the heights and dive to the vortexes of the reader's imagination. Particularly in this volume, the great man showcased how he devised a colonial tongue to portray the years gone by when the townsfolk were fascinated by apparitions, monstrosities and lovers-turned-legends. Among the five stories here, "Doña Jeronima" and "Legend of the Dying Wanton" are my personal favorites, for both are fused with sophisticated prose which could not be toppled down nor pinched and touched by all recently published stories combined. Then I discovered, not too late this time, that most of the emerging and acclaimed fictionists today are undoubtedly inspired by his storytelling techniques. What a gift of words, to effortless fathom causes, consequences, pain, suffering! And this humbled capsule review will never suffice the reviewer's vicarious effort to emulate.
Flash Book Review No. 61: Commencing with the sound of a fabulist awed by the glory of a cathedral, "The Mass of St. Sylvestre" pullulated with cadences requisite of striking and remarkable storytelling which hooks a reader to continue reading. And this reader, stupefied by a language so distinct and so elegant, will proceed to "The Summer Solstice" -- for which the National Artist is known, by students and teachers who always end up mesmerized by the narrative and its haunting resolution -- that has marked the fictionist as an icon of magic realism and folklore enthusiasm. And this patient reader, who looks for longer works will keep on reading "The Order of Melchizedek" not for the plot's complexity -- pushing one character or two to find out how a sect or cult started wreaking nothing but havoc on everyone's sense of normalcy -- but for its endurance of the character's individual intricacies, their hopes and envies, their innocence and passion. After giving these three stories a good and lasting glance, this reader realized that there is only one writer, gifted by the unquestionable knowledge of Catholic precepts and popular beliefs, who could portray the prototype Filipino household, the nature of which is capitalized in the abundance of irrationality, supernatural realms and ideological conflicts between lovers and kin. However panegyrical this review should sound, I still love May Day Eve and Other Stories more for its sophistication and didactic powers.
*
Flash Book Review No. 30: A sigh of momentary awe, if there is such an expression, encapsulates my adoration for this book of a gem. Where brilliance of the verse slips between words. Where geometry of desire, bafflement and pain shows off its cuts and edges. Whether it explores Amorsolo portraits or reimagines Bulosan's America Is In The Heart, (given her command of aesthetics and art criticism), Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta's grasp of catching me at my weakest and loneliest points will never lose charm and force. After reading this, I appreciated how flora and fauna---through an introspective, unsurprisingly cosmopolitan eye---could serve as springboard for a mystical kind of lyricism (I don't care anymore about my phraseology) which leads to a remarkable poem. There also sprung the idea that this series of collections is a Song, introduced by the guitar blues, sustained by the arpeggio, and culminated by the gospel cadences of hush and murmur. And in this oneness have I found a possibility: even in the ulteriority and complexity of poetry, the reader can achieve the highest degree of understanding. In his own world. In his own vanity.
*
Flash Book Review No. 29: Poetry, as the medium of the Self, brings out extraordinary parallels to the fathomless parables and paradoxes of the Bible. And Abel Clerk's italic mind explores the eroticism, violence and quietness of each of the 81 books (including the "Apocrypha") without the attempt to twist or even modify their impetus and core. My favorite segment is that of Paul's Epistles (from 'romans' to 'two thessalonians') which showcase the poet's knack of capturing the reader with his mastery of forms i.e. sestina, pantoums and villanelles, as well as with his concentrated and condensed telling of either a secularly known or an unnoticed story. A speculative, contemporary glance at the most important book in Western culture should not be reduced to a productive act of blasphemy. This must be treated as an attempt to see God in the labyrinths of imagination and in the feats of unsolicited reworkings of the Word. Bibel (Cervisian, 2009) stands for poetry's agency to bring the reader into "the quest of questioning".
*
Flash Book Review No. 36: In this volume were women whose strengths stood out in the realms of pain and separation, women whose husbands and lovers chose crooked paths and got trapped in misery possibly brought by pride, infidelity and detachment, women who aspired for stability and genuine happiness but unpredictable economic conditions did not let this aspiration prevail, and women in love of the syntax of their bodies, knowledgeable of what to do when lasting love offered either intensity or fragmentation. In this volume was Jenny Llaguno's passion and hardwork to make these "fragments of intensity" come alive with vivid depictions of domestic life, wise and intentional austerity of dialogues, and concentrated politics on the lives of women tested by discovery of the significant other's infidelity or delusion. In this volume was a certain kind of omniscience on "the path of the heart" that took its toil, when the fictionist floated on surfaces and lurked in peripheries ij order to give readers glimpses to heartbreak and rage only silences could accentuate and eventually tame. In the likes of Lakambini Sitoy and Alice Munro, the author, whose life is spent in utilizing the powers of the mind to assert women's rights and capabilities in a continually chauvinistic and male-dominated culture, has produced a book worthy of note.
*
Flash Book Review No. 38: The poems in this collection
explore how language can become limitless when desire---one's supplication for
the Other and for the longevity of intimacy---is of utmost concern. Language,
through the intelligence and depth brought by Mark Anthony
Cayanan, has found its place called Placelessness, where words (as
well as their promise of magic and specificity) have let go of their respective
geographies, now that heaves and sighs and silences articulate better the
poet's mind. "There is no need / to fear. Touch that isn't given / isn't
always withheld." This proves that poetry should not confine itself to
being sensations and perceptions; it must bring the reader to metaphysical
realms, to the everlasting questioning of imposed verities. Touch is not an act
nor texture, but the persona's imposition of what needs to be felt at the
moment and in every moment thereafter. The same with fragmentation, "I can
show who you are and what you're made of, but then I'd have to destroy
you." The desire of the Self to be torn of its innocence and clinging to
regularities is intensely shown in Cayanan's verse which illustrates how
addressing a "tormentor" (representing one or many) could help in
developing a concept of the self. With this kind of poetry collection---hoping
for a breakaway from a phenomenon where other Filipino poets painlessly and
hopelessly place everyday speech in their poeticized braggadocio---I will
surely let myself be destroyed and led astray to the beauty of ambiguity.
*
Flash Book Review No. 40: It is through art can we express the seat of human desires, one's vulnerabilities and his/her aspiration for strength and fullness. Conchitina "Chingbee" Cruz, whose compelling collection Dark Hours I had the chance to read and enjoy, has without reservation poeticized one's perspectives on seduction, fidelity, marriage, and recovery from the wounds of letting go in Elsewhere Held and Lingered (High Chair, 2010). Whether the persona is the author articulating personal experiences or she formed a plethora of women's voices within a singular voice resonating in all the poems, she succinctly captured the essence of what it means to be strong when weakness "haunts rather than invades" and to be meditative when the fragility of heart "tries to break open and bleeds of withered daffodils". Not to mention the effortlessness in enjambments and delineations in order to arrive at what intends to narrate and illustrate, this book testifies to the impetus of anyone who's bound by the spell of poetry: the after, the aftertaste and the afterthought of words which last and linger in the mouth, in memory. And for this chance of savoring great poetry, like in this one, I will ever be thankful. (Personal favorites among the poems are "Index of last lines", "Marginalia" and "One for the baby, and one more for the road".)
*
Flash Book Review No. 43: Amber Buenaventura Garma, the daughter of my former head Ms. Maila, had her book of poems published when she was 15. I borrowed a copy from Ms. Adelma Libunao Salvador. This Fossil of a Mind (Philippine High School for the Arts, 2016) beautifully articulates the Self, whose desires and leanings are of Otherness. The representational impetus of her poetry, and that is the conscious effort to become the voice of a generation misjudged by their choices and habits, resonated in every page. Her giftedness, fueled by, as I read each poem, the rhythm of Allen Ginsberg, James Dean, Bob Dylan and Nikki Giovanni, is a testament to the need to recognize in every child at the early stage of his/her life the talent, the intelligence, and the courage to write. Reading the first poem up to the last is a delightful experience with the poet, as I journeyed with her from innocence to awareness of the self and the world, reinforcing in me a hard-earned truth: a life lived to the fullest is not confined in whatever the heart beats for, but in offering everything you do for others, for your loved ones, for those who are prejudiced and unheard. Away from themes of infatuation, friendship and fangirling, each work is a narrative rendered lyrical by the poet's sincerity, discipline and experimentation of the form. Whether the poems centered around the life in a dorm school or reverberated the uncertainty of future for young women like her, what is important is that her art has served its primal purpose. Personal favorites such as "The Rest of My Selves", "Backlight", "Stone Song" and "Reprint" concretized my adoration for her purposeful art. The flourishing of an artist is what I always enjoy witnessing. May this unsolicited review launch her into more readers and supporters.
*
Flash Book Review No. 55: While I was reading this short but sweet treat, I smiled, laughed, frowned and gazed at every page and at how intricate and how marvellous "being" and "becoming" Filipino is. "You have a high threshold for pain and suffering." We are not aware of our quirks and idiosyncrasies until a book lists these down and leads us into self-assessment and examination of our identity, not only as individual Filipinos but as a collective enamored by the past, rendered baffled by the present, and discomfited yet made ever-resilient by the haste of future. This book of a checklist selected by Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz is a timeless invitation, an ever-relevant engagement to read and reflect on everything that distinguishes us from the rest of the human race. What made this book a more interesting read is its fun multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank items which demand one to answer in order to measure the degree of his own involvement in the pursuit of identity, an identity filled with carefully plastered balikbayan boxes, misinterpreted traffic lights, unshakeable faith in God, and devotion to the perpetuation of virtues of generosity, hospitality and chivalry. Not only did the wonderful illustrations accentuate the impetus of the listing, they also succinctly presented the usual and "truly Filipino" conversations and lifestyles. Read this and find for yourself! On the other side of the coin, this statement struck me and left me alarmed: "You have a high tolerance for corruption and a short, forgiving memory when it comes to history." May this not be a laughable fact. May this be changed into the positive, especially in these times when powers-that-be suppose that they could erase before our faces the painful past and make us believe in their manipulations of the truth. Hope and courage should not be lost on every Filipino striving for a better life and fulfilling his dreams with honor and grace. May the quotidian Filipino head or heart, when cracked open and magnified by circumstances, be found filled with sincerity, passion, discipline and optimism.
*
Flash Book Review No. 57: In his lifetime, "Dahling Nick" set the bar in stylizing prose, and this bar demanded that every writer had to listen to, and learn from, the sense, rhythm and power of all his prose. I have read some of his widely published reportages, and reading his popular works in fiction made me conclude that Nick Joaquin is the best Filipino writer in English, in a language he wrote with the melisma of Spanish, in a language he beautifully captured by pen or typewriter. The cadence of each line must be the intensity of each click and throb. This knack of Nick must soar to the heights and dive to the vortexes of the reader's imagination. Particularly in this volume, the great man showcased how he devised a colonial tongue to portray the years gone by when the townsfolk were fascinated by apparitions, monstrosities and lovers-turned-legends. Among the five stories here, "Doña Jeronima" and "Legend of the Dying Wanton" are my personal favorites, for both are fused with sophisticated prose which could not be toppled down nor pinched and touched by all recently published stories combined. Then I discovered, not too late this time, that most of the emerging and acclaimed fictionists today are undoubtedly inspired by his storytelling techniques. What a gift of words, to effortless fathom causes, consequences, pain, suffering! And this humbled capsule review will never suffice the reviewer's vicarious effort to emulate.
*
Flash Book Review No. 61: Commencing with the sound of a fabulist awed by the glory of a cathedral, "The Mass of St. Sylvestre" pullulated with cadences requisite of striking and remarkable storytelling which hooks a reader to continue reading. And this reader, stupefied by a language so distinct and so elegant, will proceed to "The Summer Solstice" -- for which the National Artist is known, by students and teachers who always end up mesmerized by the narrative and its haunting resolution -- that has marked the fictionist as an icon of magic realism and folklore enthusiasm. And this patient reader, who looks for longer works will keep on reading "The Order of Melchizedek" not for the plot's complexity -- pushing one character or two to find out how a sect or cult started wreaking nothing but havoc on everyone's sense of normalcy -- but for its endurance of the character's individual intricacies, their hopes and envies, their innocence and passion. After giving these three stories a good and lasting glance, this reader realized that there is only one writer, gifted by the unquestionable knowledge of Catholic precepts and popular beliefs, who could portray the prototype Filipino household, the nature of which is capitalized in the abundance of irrationality, supernatural realms and ideological conflicts between lovers and kin. However panegyrical this review should sound, I still love May Day Eve and Other Stories more for its sophistication and didactic powers.
*****
Since 2016, Aloysiusi Polintan has worked as a Senior High School Principal in Divina Pastora College. He started scribbling poems and essays when he was 17 years old. These poems are still kept in a notebook and wait to be revised for future publication. This notebook will be revived and will give birth to language already "lived." That is why his blog is named "Renaissance of a Notebook," a blog of poems, personal and academic essays, and flash movie reviews. His book reviews, which are published and featured in The Halo-Halo Review and Galatea Resurrects, are also to be found on the blog, under the series title "Mesmerized." He believes that the ability to judge or critique a literary piece starts with the reader's being moved and mesmerized by the artful arrangement of words articulating some longing for freedom and individuality. He's now working on a manuscript of 50 poems, with a working title of Brittle Sounds. He's 24 years old, living in Nueva Ecija.
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