Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila [Paperback]

Marianne Villanueva (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1993

Beautiful and poignant stories set in the Philippines

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Villanueva's debut collection of probing, dreamlike tales about the Philippines during Ferdinand Marcos's dictatorship provides a haunting picture of the island's landscape and an intriguing glimpse into the minds and hearts of its people. In these 11 stories, Villanueva tells of villagers and city dwellers struggling to retain their humanity in the face of military repression. She also explores the clash between old and new values in a country overshadowed by Western influences. Despite their sorrow and confusion, Villanueva's protagonists derive strength from natural surroundings whose power she skillfully conveys. "I have the feeling that the garden is alive and speaking to me," says a villager whose mother has died. "My mother's voice comes from the heart of the trees, where the sap and the root and the life of the world come together." Whether she describes the ghost of a boy, slain by a corrupt colonel, "dancing across the rice paddies" or a graffiti artist fighting "the will of the dictator" with magic chalk, Villanueva pk injects a sense of forboding. Hers is a milieu where it is hard to distinguish myth from reality and lies from truth.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Marianne Villanueva, a former Stegner Fellow in Creative Writing at Stanford, has been writing and publishing stories about the Philippines and Filipino Americans since the mid 1980s. She currently teaches writing and literature at Foothill College and Notre Dame de Namur University. Born and raised in Manila, she now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: CALYX Books (July 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0934971196
• ISBN-13: 978-0934971195
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,334,583 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #59 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > British > Contemporary

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TALENTED FILIPINA WRITER, December 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila (Paperback)

Marianne Villanueva's book, Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila, is a fine collection of stories. She is a remarkable story teller. I am appalled that an anonymous reader should bash this book publicly and not have the guts to print his or her name. I highly recommend this book to all. Cecilia Brainard

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book, December 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila (Paperback)

Marianne Villanueva's "Ginseng and other Tales From Manila" is one of the finest books I've read in the past few years. She seamlessly weaves together the social, political, emotional and supernatural elements of Filipino life. She is a fine stylist, but her gifts go far beyond the quality of her prose; her understanding of the human heart, her eye and ear for the telling detail, the balance she maintains between poignancy and detachment -- all these make for an original, disturbing, fascinating book. I've since lent the book to friends; many read it from cover to cover in one sitting, and the stories -- and characters -- have lingered with us long after we closed the book. Highly recommended.

4 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars UNINSPIRED AND BLAND WRITING, August 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila (Paperback)

The stories in this collection have little to do with plot, character development, and astute narration. Point of view is skewed in the narratives. There are no real endings. Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila is obviously Ms Villanueva's first attempt at publishing her bland writings to the world. Let us hope her type of inspiration does not provide the intelligent reading public with a second volume of novice prose.