TheFilAm.Net Books of 2023
By Tricia J. Capistrano
In the last few years more and more Filipino American stories are being published in the United States. What an exciting time for us and for our children! Here’s our select list of books we wish everyone would find time to read. We included some passages from their cover blurbs.
This year, we are kicking off TheFilAm.net’s yearly selection of Filipino American books. At the end of every year, we will list recently released books by Filipino Americans, most of whom were reviewed in this publication. Click on the Bookshop.org link to purchase a book. TheFilAm.net and US independent booksellers get a small commission every time a book is sold.
FICTION & POETRY
A Tiny Upward Shove by Melissa Chadburn
Marina Salles’s life does not end the day she wakes up dead. Instead, in the course of a moment, she is transformed into the stuff of myth, the stuff of her grandmother’s old Filipino stories–an aswang, a creature of mystery and vengeance. She spent her time on earth on the margins; shot like a pinball through a childhood of loss, she was a veteran of Child Protective Services and a survivor, but always reacting, watching from a distance, understanding very little of her own life, let alone the lives of others.
Blackmail and Bibingka by Mia P Manansala
Lila Macapagal deals with the return of the prodigal cousin, Ronnie, whose mom runs Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. As Ronnie tries to prove that he is not just a schemer and a swindler and tries to regain his family’s trust, a mysterious death takes place at Shady Palms Winery, where he had hoped to start producing lambanog.Now accused of murder, Lila has to help clear up the family name and hope that Ronnie is truly innocent for Tita Rosie’s sake.
Forgiving Imelda Marcos by Nathan Go
After suffering a serious heart injury, Lito Macaraeg reaches out to his estranged son–a journalist who lives in the United States, far from his father’s Manila nursing home–to promise him a scoop: the story of a secret meeting between Imelda Marcos and Corazon Aquino.
Hues and Harmony: How the Rainbow Butterfly Got her Colors by Marissa Bañez
“Hues and Harmony” deals with mixed race kids, self-acceptance, belonging, and parental love, using primary colors, basic chemistry, and common shapes.
I’d Rather Burn than Bloom by Shannon C.F. Rogers
Packed with voice, Shannon C.F. Rogers’ I’d Rather Burn than Bloom is a powerful YA novel about a Filipina-American teen who tries to figure out who she really is in the wake of her mother’s death.
I Was The President’s Mistress by Miguel Syjuco
Vita Nova, a fictional persona in the movie industry takes part in a series of interviews conducted by “Miguel Syjuco,” the real author’s conjured scribe for the celebrity’s “tell-all memoir.”
Multo, A Thriller by Cindy Fazzi
Mystery, suspense, tension, moments of despair, and the darkest depths of human behavior coexist with the most benevolent and charitable of actions and terms of endearment in Cindy Fazzi’s book.
Storm Across My Cherished Bamboo Bridge by Gene del Carmen
Fifteen-year-old Meiling has always sensed that her Dad, Douglas, has been keeping a secret which can shed light on why she grew up without a mother. Now that he controls the largest laundry-supply business in the Northeast, USA, Douglas’ dark past as a feared gangster in Hong Kong is forcing him to face a future that clouds his relationship with his daughter.
NON-FICTION
Settling St. Malo by Randy Gonzales
“Settling St. Malo,” is a collection of Randy Gonzales’s poems reflecting the early Filipino settlers’ years in the Louisiana bayous. Randy Gonzales is an Associate Professor of English and Assistant department head at the University of Louisiana of Lafayette.
Every Ounce of Courage by Elizabeth Ann Besa-Quirino
“You don’t know me, but your mother saved my life.”
The late night conversation with an American World War II veteran revealed to Elizabeth Ann Besa Quirino the untold stories of her mother’s remarkable wartime heroism and sparked a twenty-year journey of discovery about her lifelong acts of bravery and compassion.
Horse Barbie by Geena Rocero
As a young femme in 1990s Manila, Geena Rocero heard, “Bakla, bakla!,” a taunt aimed at her feminine sway, whenever she left the tiny universe of her eskinita. Eventually, she found her place in trans pageants, the Philippines’ informal national sport. When her competitors mocked her as a “horse Barbie” due to her statuesque physique, tumbling hair, long neck, and dark skin, she leaned into the epithet. By seventeen, she was the Philippines’ highest-earning trans pageant queen.
Some People Need Killing by Patricia Evangelista
David Remnick, editor of the The New Yorker calls Patricia Evangelista’s book, “Some People Need Killing,” “one of the most remarkable pieces of narrative nonfiction I have read in a long, long time.” Selected by the New York Times as one of the 10 Best Books of the Year..
We Cook Filipino Compiled and edited by Jacqueline Chio-Lauri
This book, compiled and edited by UK-based Filipina editor Jacqueline Chio-Lauri, presents the extraordinary food culture of the Philippines in stories and recipes from 36 culinary trailblazers— award-winning chefs, food writers and social media stars from around the globe. They share not just their favorite recipes for classic Philippine dishes like Adobo, Sinigang and Ginataan, but also their personal family stories about what Filipino food culture means to them.
Why Should Guys Have All the Fun by Loida Lewis
In her memoir “Why Should Guys Have All the Fun: An Asian-American Story of Love, Marriage, Motherhood, and Running a Billion-Dollar Empire,” Loida Lewis provides us with her collection of personal experiences and momentous turn of events that took place in her life.
You’re That Bitch by Bretman Rock
Hilarious and earnest, this collection of essays, and never-before-seen photos goes far beyond what we know of Bretman Rock from social media. Who is Bretman Rock Sacayanan behind the screen and how did he become the original superstar influencer and today’s beloved best friend of the internet?
