I am NOT a critic. I'm merely an observer. (Books, movies, plays, musicals etc.)

A NATION ON FIRE Book cover design: Noli C. Galang Back Cover photograph: Sonny Yabao Published by: Icon Press Inc. The king is dead. The so-called real winner of the past elections is dead. Will  this nation ever find solace in her leaders? As this was brewing in my brain, a  red book caught my eye: A NATION ON FIRE. I have seen this book several  times before. It was the former Senator Francisco S. Tatad’s personal gift to my  dad. I am familiar with his work and we had the book for quite sometime now, but  somehow it was only now that I became really interested.  I have been “involved” in Philippine politics ever since I was a kid. Sometimes  it already sickens me. Yet, this book is a breath of fresh air.  Tatad is very convincing. He makes the reader feel like he is part of the  scenario of the impeachment trial and the aftermath. Pictures taken from the  portfolio of Today and Pinoy Tim...

I am a wide reader, but I never had the chance to read any work of Sabina  Murray , winner of the 2003 PEN/Faulkner Award before I came across this book. The title was catchy: A  Carnivore’s Inquiry . Hmmm, it was very intriguing. Plus critics claiming she  created an entirely new genre called ironic gothic made me more curious to  what the content of this book was. As I turned the pages I could now say that the characters were very offbeat,  queer, funny and in a class of their own. The twenty-three year old European  heroine, Katherine, was very charming, but poignant and disturbing at the same  time. As Katherine narrates her life one would think that her being unbelievable  was a flaw of Murray, but that was how she wanted Katherine to be...at first. Her  peculiar appetite for the flesh is quite eerie.  The book as a whole is quite astonishing, but very entertaining. Some parts were  nail-biting experiences, but some w...