I just realized - I don't have any Nick Joaquin books in my catalog! How dare I call myself a PinoyThinger!

I plan to commence my penance by circumambulating Quiapo Church on my knees while reading "Summer Solstice" out loud. And, of course, I will make reparations by adding some of his work to my catalog.

Where do I begin? Where should a Joaquin novice start off? (Not entirely a novice, I've read some of his short stories.)

i guess best to start with the short stories. get Tropical Gothic. no need for penance. we all have our (library) faults.

no need for penance. we all have our (library) faults.

I know. Mahilig lang akong mag-drama. hehehehe. Will look for Tropical Gothic double-quick. :)

Start with his poetry.

get his "prose and poems" published by bookmark... P160 455+ pages

I have feeling you might like A Question of Heroes :) Reprints are available.

medyo out of the topic: I read somewhere that he has written children's books. Title, anyone?

We had those books in our grade school library when I was a wee brat. The only one I can remember right now is Elang Uling, an adaptation of the Cinderella story with a dollhouse twist. The rest I can't remember.

I don't have a Nick Joaquin in my library, but I have read his very engaging "Quartet of a Tiger Moon" coincidentally just when Edsa 2 was about to explode. Must read if you like non-fiction, or what they would sometimes label as a literary journalism

Has anyone read Woman with Two Navels? This was my one and only Nick Joaquin read and I must confess that I was confused. I didn't understand some of his word choices, nor did I completely buy the tone of the dialogue. Was this originally written in English or another language like Tagalog and then just akwardly translated? I'm wondering if anyone else thought the same. It was my first time so maybe I need to reread just to get what I'm missing...

I don't have Nick Joaquin but no regrets. I read a lot of NJ in college and highschool. I dont like everything he's done but enjoyed his journalistic pieces.

eyelesbarrow, I think it really IS a shame if you're not in any way interested in reading Nick Joaquin again. hehe.

#8:
He wrote 10 stories and the collection was called "Pop Stories for Groovy Kids." My mom gave a set to me when I was in grade four (1984), judging from my handwriting of my name at the top left corner of each haha. My copies are battered as these were some of my favorite books to read and reread when I was younger.

I was planning to scan and input the titles into LibraryThing tonight! What a coincidence that I found this thread.

The titles of the stories:
Lilit Bulilit and the Babe-in-the-Womb
Sarimanok Vs. Ibong Adarna
How Love Came To Juan Tamad
The Hamiling Mystery
Johnny Tinoso and the Proud Beauty
Going to Jerusalem
The Four Little Monkeys Who Went To Eden
The Adventures of Culas-Culasito
The Happiest Boy in the World
The Amazing History of Elang Uling

Unfortunately, I only have 8 of the 10. I lost Sarimanok and Johnny Tinoso =(

If any of you find these titles in some bookstore, please share the info. =)

(I'll come back to this thread tonight and put touchstones in this post -- will scan and upload the covers!)

Message edited by its author, Dec 4, 2007, 10:49am.

Elang Uling! I read that in grade school.... I really loved that story! If I ever see that collection in a bookstore, I'm going to buy that for old times' sake!

The touchstones won't work for some reason. Anyway, if you're curious as to how the covers look, they're here.

His short stories, "Summer Solstice," and "May Day Eve" are powerful, passionate.

I read a couple of books years ago, Reportage on Crime, and Reportage on Lovers, also by Joaquin, which my mathematically inclined (read: non-literary type) husband enjoyed so much that we are searching for copies to read again. The original books were borrowed by one of those non-returning miscreants from my mom's personal library.

*Edited to note that indeed, the touchstone brackets seem to be on the fritz tonight.

Message edited by its author, Nov 30, 2007, 9:00am.

All due respect, but not *all* Americans are interested in Hemingway or Steinbeck. Not *all* Russians love Dostoevsky (...or perhaps even vodka, I suspect).

Why should anyone's being Filipino require him or her to want to read Nick Joaquin?

Live and let live, I always say.

Well, nobody's "requiring" anybody to read Nick Joaquin. However, it's rather odd to like Nick Joaquin's writing (as I do) and yet not have any Nick Joaquin books in one's library (like me).

It's a matter of where I shop, I guess - I built my library by frequenting secondhand bookstores, and Nick Joaquin isn't a major presence in Booksale.

Oh, haha, well that's another matter entirely... sort of like enjoying the Simpsons but not having any of their DVDs (and never EVER owning up to the fact).

I hear ya dude, and that's cool. I was really just knee-jerk reacting to Message 12.

Cheers

--= Brandy may be dandy, but bebelgam is forever. =--

Message 14: micketymoc
Elang Uling! I read that in grade school.... I really loved that story! If I ever see that collection in a bookstore, I'm going to buy that for old times' sake

Where "a Joaquin novice" to begin? Methinks you've got your book right there. How's that for a full-circle experience, micketymoc? :)

#16 @dizzydame, I have both Reportage books from my mother's collection. The pages are now brown as these publications were printed on newsprint (local newsprint, I believe). I read them when I was young. You may try La Solidaridad, although these titles are now rare. Not even alibris.com and abebooks.com list it as of this post.

now i have one of his books! i have been searching Manila, My Manila for decades. Looking for a second hand book that I can afford. Found one, paperback printed in 1990.