Eating Fire and Drinking Water [Paperback]

Arlene J. Chai (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 20, 1998

"I was someone hungry for stories; more specifically, I was someone who craved after facts. I was, you see, a person with no history. Lacking this, I developed a curiosity about other's people's stories. . . ."

Clara Perez is a reporter on a small South seas island. An orphan raised by nuns, she is a young woman with origins shrouded in mystery. Full of idealistic ambition, she grows tired of the trivial assignments she's given at the daily paper, yearning to write articles of substance. So when the tiny street of Calle de Leon bursts into flames after a student demonstration--and a soldier kills an unarmed man--Clara seizes the chance to cover the explosive story.

Yet after Clara rushes to the burning street to investigate the tragedy, she discovers another, more personal one involving some remarkable truths about her unknown past--ghosts, she realizes, which have been silently pursuing her all her life. And as family secrets begin to unfold, Clara's missing history slowly spreads itself out on the tumultuous backdrop of a country wracked by revolution. . . .

An evocative and multilayered tale, at once political and personal, Eating Fire and Drinking Water is an extraordinary work, a powerful and pulsing novel of politics and commitment, loyalty and love, and the poignant search for truth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ambitious and self-conscious, the second novel (after The Last Time I Saw Mother) from popular, Philippine-born Australian novelist Chai features Clara Perez, a journalist orphaned as an infant, who discovers that her personal history makes an interesting story of its own. Clara is struggling to make a name for herself as a reporter on an unnamed island reminiscent of the Philippines when a student riot starts a deadly fire in an obscure part of town. Sensing a story, Clara investigates and finds that her roots (hidden by the nuns who took her into their orphanage) are irrevocably entwined with the events and lives now unfolding before her. Though interspersed with amusing and occasionally absorbing tales, the novel's awkward pacing and confusing structure hinder our appreciation of Clara's quest for identity. Clara herself is hard to grasp: she and the rest of the cast seem to exist mostly in order to advance the plot, in which a growing rebellion looms large. Add to these problems a point of view that skips from major to minor characters without taking the time to round them out, and one is left with a muddle. In one of several apologies to the reader, Clara says: "There are many memories here, and if I jump about in recounting them, you must forgive me." One can admire Chai's attempt to write a far-reaching and deeply personal story; but her diffuse narrative, despite its moments of engagement, lacks dramatic effect.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

A singing river, dream visitations, prophecy, stigmata, and a repressive dictatorship together form the plot of this second novel by Filipino Australian author Chai. (Her first was an Australian best seller, The Last Time I Saw Mother, Fawcett, 1996.) The dying days of a despotic regime are set forth by Clara Perez, a novice journalist. Sent to cover a routine story, Clara unwittingly stumbles upon the story that will change her life and, ultimately, the direction of the nation. Chai carefully draws the many characters here, elaborating on their histories, motivations, and development. Although these vivid characters are the strength of the novel, their personal stories create digressions that slow its progress, and the many coincidences that connect the cast are sometimes far-fetched. Several graphically violent passages go beyond what might have been needed to depict the horrors of an out-of-control regime. However, this novel has many beautiful passages: suddenly revealed truths about human nature and the nature of relationships. Recommended for most public and academic libraries.?Rebecca A. Stuhr, Grinnell Coll. Libs., IA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 350 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (April 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449911438
• ISBN-13: 978-0449911433
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,257,672 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fourteen Year Old Opinion, November 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Eating Fire and Drinking Water (Paperback)

I was forced into reading this book. And at first, I found myself confused and thinking "ho-hum" with a matching sigh and yawn. But that didn't last long, because my interest progressed the further I was drawn into the story. I could not put the book down for long.

It's not really about Clara as the book description says, it's more of a series of events intertwined to complement each other. I find the plot complex and something that can't quite be labelled and defined as it's not just about news. I also found it heartbreakingly close to reality, quite poignant with the search for truth and the wise insights brought upon that are just screaming for you to quote them, the morals heroic but not preachy, the characters honorable but not flawless, a backdrop that was well researched in Philippine history. It has suspense, it has drama, it has mystery, it has every one of those genres within its pages. The beauty of this book is in its balance. The story ends nicely, but not fairy tale like. There is acceptance, but honest difficulty in it. There are horrible experiences, but no miraculous cure for them at the end of the book. True to life.

This story definitely warmed my heart to it, and I must say, considering I usually stick to reading fluffy and light books, this holds extraordinary power. I'm glad I read it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's like your best friend telling you a story, September 15, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Eating Fire and Drinking Water (Paperback)

I could remember vividly most of the events that were stated in the book. Even if the names of the characters and places are changed, they are very familiar. It's definitely a story with the fall of the Marcos regime as a backdrop. I could relate to that book because I was in Manila at that time when some of the events mentioned became chapters in Philippine history.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating story, very well-written, May 15, 1998

By 

Gemma N ([e-mail]) (San Francisco Bay Area, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eating Fire and Drinking Water (Paperback)

Set in a "small South Seas island" that is easily recognizable as the Philippines, Eating Fire and Drinking Water is a fascinating, well-written book that successfully melds the chaos of a dying authoritarian regime, the idealism of activist youths, the homegrown cunning of the poor and dispossessed and the surreal religiosity that is all too familiar to Filipinos and those who have spent time in the country. I applaud Arlene J. Chai for not succumbing to the slogans and the jargon that were carelessly brandished about during the period she writes of. And I envy her her skill in putting together a story that is at once plausible (because many of the things she wrote about actually happened) and riveting. I could not put down the book -- everything was too familiar. I felt that I was back to that time and that place that have shaped me to what I am right now.