Poets from both sides of the Pacific join together for the first time in this 50th anniversary anthology.

*Longlisted for the Swansea University Dylan Thomas prize 2021* *Shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize 2021: A 'tour-de-force'* *An Irish Times and Poetry School Book of the Year 2020* 'A day will come when you won't miss the country na nagluwal sa 'yo.' - 'Antiemetic for Homesickness' The poems in Romalyn Ante's luminous debut build a bridge between two worlds: journeying from the country 'na nagluwal sa 'yo' - that gave birth to you - to a new life in the United Kingdom. Steeped in the richness of Filipino folklore, and studded with Tagalog, these poems speak of the ache of assimilation and the complexities of belonging, telling the stories of generations of migrants who find exile through employment - through the voices of the mothers who leave and the children who are left behind. With dazzling formal dexterity and emotional resonance, this expansive debut offers a unique perspective on family, colonialism, homeland and heritage: from the countries we carry with us, to the places we call home. 'Moving, witty and agile' Observer 'By turns playful and tender, offering a formally-various exploration of migration, community, and nursing... there is honesty, musicality, a powerful heart' Irish Times

Through vivid and rhythmic poetry, My Heart of Rice moves to empower anyone who may have a difficult or unconventional relationship with their cultural identity. While Lanuza encourages acceptance of our unique details, she emphasizes the unity found in shared experiences and speaks of the inherent need for belonging, the youthful attempts at assimilation, and the deep melting pot of ethnicity and culture that makes up our humanity.

Rachelle Cruz's debut collection is beyond ready to burst itself open, and bleed. Savor these poems, suck the marrow from their bones. These are lovely, complex poems, "sweet and bitter as a plum," a braised heart, blood-warmed and wet. -Barbara Jane Reyes

31 short stories and 108 poems represent a literary history of English writing in the Philippines, from the turn of the century to the present.

The Marcos dictatorship that rules the Philippines from 1965 through 1986 produced a wealth of art and literature dedicated to dismantling an unjust social order. This book documents and describes those poetic moments of resistance as narrated, portrayed, and analyzed by leading Filipino poets in three Philippine languages -- Tagalog, Hokano, and English.

Philippine Folk Literature: The Epics presents 23 folk epics collected from some 14 ethnolinguistic groups in the country. This is the eighth volume being added to the original 7-volume Philippine Folk Literature Series. Folk epics are long heroic narratives in verse which recount the adventures of tribal heroes and in the process express the customs, beliefs, and ideals of the people who sing them. The introductory essay, The Philippine Folk Epic, gives a detailed discussion of the features and characteristics of Philippine folk epics--their geographic distribution; epic singing and singers; the epic hero, his adventures and his outstanding qualities; epic conventions; dominant motifs; and the customs, beliefs, and values expressed in them. The epics are arranged in geographic order from north to south, starting with Lam-ang (Northern. Luzon), then to Labaw Donggon (Visayas), and on to Mindanao, w the greatest number of our folk epics come from (Tuwaang, Agyu, Bantugan, etc.). A distinctive feature of Philippine epic literature is that while other countries have one national epic hero, e.g., England's Beowulf, Spain's El Cid, etc., the Philippines has no national epic hero but more than a dozen tribal epic heroes. This volume thus gives the reader an opportunity to get acquainted with these folk epic heroes and the values and ideals they stand for. As in the other volumes in the Philippine Folk Literature Series, the selections are given in English translation, but a sampling of the text in the original language is given at the beginning of each selection.

Powerful first collection by acclaimed Filipina Australian performance poet In Flood Damages Andrada explores themes associated with immigration and inheritance, through the figure of a young Australian Filipina woman, whose family has been irreparably damaged by deportation, violence and illness. The wounds inflicted by these events, political and personal, are felt most keenly in and through her body – ‘your blood sings of the scattered histories/ that left you here’ – and in a dramatic use of language, influenced by the rhythms of prayer, which expresses pain and anger with passionate intensity. A performance poet, Andrada combines the theatrical qualities of voice and image in this, her first published collection, affirming the female body as a site of vulnerability and power.

The editors have compiled a century's worth of Philippine love poems in English, providing the reader with a long view of the experience of love in our own time and place. The poems are arranged chronologically--according to the poet's birth year--and each poem is accompanied by the date of composition and first publication.