Books

I used to be a teacher, hence I am supposed to have read a lot of books; yet compared to my children Roy and Emil, I have read less books than they. I have quite a few books on the shelves of which at some point, I thought of reading but never did. Until now, they are still there gathering dust. What a shame! I have committed a grave sin as a teacher by by-passing these classics: Anne of the Green Gable, the Crucible, War and Peace, Garland for Girls, the Grapes of Wrath, Peyton Place, Sense and Sensibility, Catch 22, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Les Miserables etc........

During the 60's and 70's, I was so much into Agatha Christie and Erle Stanley Gardner mystery cases. Back then, I preferred to read detective stories rather than love stories from Mills and Boons. I did not also like very much those popular novels of Harold Robins but I read some.

Then my husband Lucas introduced me to best selling authors, the likes of Irving Wallace, James A Michener, John Grisham, Ken Follet, Leon Uris, Michael Crichton, Stephen King, Tom Clancy etc.

Later,  from trying to catch up with what my voracious children were reading, I read The Little Prince, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the Nick Bantock 3 chronicle books of Griffin & Sabine, the Harry Potter complete series, the Catcher in the Rye, Memoirs of a Geisha, Stardusts etc....... I can say my children have good reading habits and good taste too.

My all time favorites though are:
1. Heidi - my first novel ever; I was in first year high school. During that time it was the practice of the school to give freshmen students the privilege of owning a library card. I was so thrilled. I went to the cozy library to borrow a book even though it was not a reading requirement. I chose the book mainly from a title that sounded similar to my name. It turned out to be an awesome read. I finished the book in less than one week, in fact I think 3 days. I soon began to develop the habit and the passion of reading books.
2. The Rosary - It was an old hardbound book given to one of my aunts as gift. But they left Cotabato and also the book behind. My eldest sister Imelda read it and I heard her tell the story to my mom. Curiously I picked it up. I was greatly touched by the romantic plot of the book. I can still remember the story line until now. Although some people may claim it as the most boring book ever, but my heart continues to believe in such an enduring love story.
3. The Empress of China by Pearl S. Buck - It is a historically based novel and I am greatly intrigued by the old grandeur of China and the cunning moves of the girl Tzu Tsi to power. This was a book bought and owned by my brother Jun. I did not know if he was able to read it but my sister Helen did. We lost the book to the 1976 earthquake in Cotabato. I have been looking for a copy of this book ever since. Sadly I never get to find one until now.
4. To Kill a Mockingbird - One summer when I was still in high school, my sister Jeannette came home for a vacation from Manila. She was holding and reading this book entitled To Kill a Mockingbird which became a blockbuster movie starring Gregory Peck but to which I was not able to see. I was however more curious about the book she was carrying from time to time the whole summer through but unable to finish. "Maybe it was extremely boring" I concluded. But after many years, one night for wanting of something to read, I curiously picked it up. Wallah, from the beginning I was transfixed and captured. I did not put the book down until I had finished. I reread this book more than 3 times. I also highly recommended it to my children when I presumed they had already reached a more matured reading age.They all read and loved it too.
5. Dream of the Red Chamber - An ancient forbidden romantic book in olden times but the love story was circulated in every old and/or new Chinese literary household. In the 60's, it was transformed into a Chinese musical movie produced by Run Run Shaw. The big movie hit was played by my then favorite HongKong actress Loh Teh.  One day, I saw this book in English translation when I visited the National Library in Manila. I partially read it. I was taken by the entwining of myth from the start of the narration, so I further followed it up from the main library of the University of Santo Thomas. I read this book more than twice when I found out my sister-in-law Jean had a copy of that English version too. 
6. The Good Earth - This is a book from my husband's collection. Every kid of Chinese descent should read it to relate to the virtues of enduring hardship, love, dignity of labor, hard work, filial love, respect and many others. Somehow, you would feel proud by relating to it as a Chinese.
7. Gone With the Wind - I watched the movie twice and I loved it; I read the book and loved it more!
8. & 9.  Hawaii by James A Michener and QB Seven by Leon Uris. These were the books that my husband read and I love them tremendously!!!
10. Lord of the Rings - My son Roy bought a complete set of hardbound copies. He brought them to Cotabato. The tales were written even before I was born but how come I heard of them only recently. I guessed the book was popularized more by the 21st century nerds. Haha. The book was so exciting. I followed  the stories by intermittently going through the map illustration inside the cover. I was so fearful of  the fates of the heroes. It was even more thrilling than watching the epic movie. 
11. Mama Mary and Her Children ( true stories of real people ) - This is the latest book I am reading, written by the late Father James B. Reuter, S.J. Of late my eyes are not as sharp and strong enough to burn the midnight oil, peering through small texts and heavy books. I resort to light materials instead such as comics and magazines. Sometimes though I am inspired to read a few Catholic publications, so I bought a few during my last visit to Manila. This book I am reading now, I find it so honest and inspiring. It's been a long time since I have stayed awake until past one o'clock in the morning reading a book. Father Reuter is such a good story teller. Kudos to him indeed. I concur with his narrations as I have often times experienced the love and joy and fulfillment of my heart desires from a loving God and the intervention of his Blessed Mother!!!!! Thank you so much!

I hope to continue reading more books............