RAd's Page Turners: White Noise by Don DeLillo

Back in December last year, I decided to get White Noise by Don DeLillo done and over with as it has been on my to be read pile even before the pandemic began. Because of the holiday distractions that came along with that time of the year, I plowed through it at a glacial pace. I somehow neglected the book altogether as the plot picked up with the black cloud just about to threaten the lives of Jack Gladney, his family and the rest of the college town.

An unfinished book bothers me so here I am, more than half a year later, attempting to read it again. And it's only recently that I learned that the novel has been adapted into a film. Yeah, how can I miss news about it? Directed by Noah Baumbach and starring Adam Driver, Greta Gerwig, and Don Cheadle, the film adaptation of White Noise is available to view over at Netflix. Nothing motivates me more to finish a book than a film adaptation already waiting at the sidelines.

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White Noise by Don DeLillo

https://amzn.to/3U4SxBf

White Noise tells the story of Jack Gladney, his fourth wife, Babette, and four ultra­modern offspring as they navigate the rocky passages of family life to the background babble of brand-name consumerism. When an industrial accident unleashes an “airborne toxic event,” a lethal black chemical cloud floats over their lives. The menacing cloud is a more urgent and visible version of the “white noise” engulfing the Gladneys—radio transmissions, sirens, microwaves, ultrasonic appliances, and TV murmurings—pulsing with life, yet suggesting something ominous.

Instituto Cervantes’ Día del Libro: Celebrating the Passion for Books at Ayala Triangle on April 26

To celebrate the World Book Day, on Saturday April 26, 2025, from 9 am to 11 pm, Instituto Cervantes de Manila, together with the Embassy of Spain, and the collaboration of Ayala Land and Make it Makati, invite visitors to the Ayala Triangle Gardens for the iconic Día del Libro, an exciting whole-day event jam-packed with a variety of activities that promote the joy of reading.

From fiction to non-fiction, poetry to prose, thousands of books will be up for grabs at the Ayala Triangle. The Día del Libro will feature Manila’s top bookstores and publishing houses, that will be selling a wide array of books at a 20% discount. Following the tradition in Spain, each book purchase will come with a free rose. Apart from the book market, visitors to the Día del Libro will get to join poetry recitals, free Spanish classes, book presentations, book signings, street art, games, exhibits, storytelling sessions, Spanish food, fun activities for the children, as well as a very authentic Flamenco show. Check out the complete program at https://manila.cervantes.es/es/cultura_espanol/calendario_dia_libro_2025.htm.

Among the activities of Día del Libro 2025, a classic stands out: Escribo el Quijote. Like every year, to commemorate the Day of Miguel de Cervantes, Instituto Cervantes is challenging visitors to join a Quixotic attempt: to handwrite the classic novel Don Quixote de La Mancha --an initiative which Instituto Cervantes started just a decade ago. The final hand-written book will be deposited in the Library of Instituto Cervantes. The activity will begin at 9:00 am. No prior registration will be required. Participants in the handwriting chain will receive a rose.

Día del Libro will officially open at 9:00 am with a special inauguration led by H. E. Miguel Utray, Ambassador of Spain to the Philippines, marking the official opening of this year’s celebration. Following the inauguration, slam poet Toni Panagu will take the stage for a moving spoken word poetry performance, setting a reflective and inspiring tone for the day’s festivities.

At 9:30 am, Vibal Group will present the workshop “Amor: Writing the New Adult Romance”, conducted by author Mina V. Esguerra. In it, Esguerra will discuss her career as a popular writer of romance stories a and her tips on how to write romance novels.

On Día del Libro, children will take center stage. They will get to enjoy a story telling at 10:15 am. The story, “El cartero simpático”, is about a mailman who delivers letters to famous characters such as Cinderella, the Three Bears, and the Big Bad Wolf.

From 11am, Spanish language learners will have the chance to take part in an Universitarian Yincana specially designed for university students across Manila. This event will include activities such as dance, live music, quizzes, poetry creation, and more. Thanks to the collaboration of local university departments, this initiative seeks to go beyond fun and entertainment — aiming to build a strong, engaged community of university students who are learning Spanish in the city. Participants will not only practice their language skills in a playful context but also connect with fellow learners from other campuses.

Through the Poetry Recital, Instituto Cervantes is inviting poetry lovers to recite verses written in Spanish. The recital will be compiled in a video that will be posted in Instituto Cervantes Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/InstitutoCervantesManila. Interested poetry aficionados must sign up here: https://forms.office.com/e/cgZtbYb7C5

For those interested in art, Instituto Cervantes is presenting the space Dibujo Makati, where Urban Sketchers Manila will display their works on the Día del Libro and conduct a workshop on sketching.

At 1:00 pm, Instituto Cervantes will have “The Writing Revolution”, a workshop on the history of the written language, at the end of which participants will get to write their name on clay in cuneiform style, in hieroglyphics on papyrus, in Greek or Latin on parchment paper, and in baybayin on palm leaf.

As one of the perks of Día del Libro, Instituto Cervantes will offer a free Spanish class for beginners at 2pm.

As gastronomy is a key aspect of culture, visitors to Día del Libro will have the opportunity to learn how to cook paella, an internationally renowned culinary delight, with one of Manila's best chefs in Barcino's delicious demo: “How to Cook a Great Paella.” Savor the intensity of Spain's flavors and surprise your friends with a delicious paella.

Book lovers will also have the chance to attend book presentations organized by some publishers. In addition, thanks to the collaboration of publishing houses, visitors will have the opportunity to meet writers who will be signing their works. Authors like Ambeth Ocampo, Anthony Shieh, Kenneth Yu, Laurel Flores Fantauzzo, Ninotchka Rosca, and Yvette Tan will be signing at the booth of Anvil Publishing. Alice Sun-Cua will be signing at Sirena Books. Charlson Ong, Kannika Claudine Peña, Wilfredo Liangco and Sanny Villafranca will sign copies of his works at the Milflores Publishing booth. Ricky Lee, Derald Lico, Yvette Tan will be signing at FEU. Jonathan Best will be signing at Ortigas Foundation. Please check the schedule at https://www.facebook.com/InstitutoCervantesManila

Flamenco

At 7 pm, catch the special show Flamenco Pasión, a musical extravaganza featuring Flamenco legend Tito Losada, a gypsy guitarist of the purest flamenco, accompanied by singer Marta Heredia, and dancers Daniela Ramos, and Lucía González. Earlier in the day, Tito Losada will conduct a free Flamenco Guitar Masterclass addressed to Advanced Guitar players. Interested in joining the masterclass must sign up through this link: https://forms.office.com/e/qKUwWFPWNE

To cap off the evening, Instituto Cervantes will close Día del Libro 2025 with a live concert by the leading Filipino rock band Yah Bles, from 9:00pm.

Whether you're a lifelong reader or just discovering the joy of books, the Día del Libro 2025 at the Instituto Cervantes de Manila is a day to celebrate the power of words to connect us with each other and to the world around us.

Día del Libro 2025 is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila, in collaboration with the Embassy of Spain in the Philippines, AECID, Ayala Corporation, Ayala Land, Make it Makati, the PTC Group, Acciona, Vibal Foundation, NCCA, NBDB, Fundador, Terry Selection, Barcino, Las Flores, and the embassies of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Panamá, and Venezuela, the Conservatory of Music of the University of Santo Tomas, Ateneo University Press, FEU Publishing House, Milflores, Anvil, Ortigas Foundation, The Indie Publishers Collab PH, Biblio, Circle of Chabacano Dreams, Fundación Santiago, Everything’s Fine, Kahel Press, Komiket, Señor Papa, Urban Sketchers Manila, Romanceclass Books, Tawid Publications, Sirena Books, Piefke, Abiva, Avenida Books, and the best Manila bookstores.

Admission to all Día del Libro activities is FREE on a FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED basis.

For more information about Instituto Cervantes de Manila’s Día del Libro 2025, visit the pages https://manila.cervantes.es/es/cultura_espanol/calendario_dia_libro_2025.htm or www.facebook.com/InstitutoCervantesManila.

Pop goes Performatura! CCP literary festival returns live and on-site

In celebration of World Poetry Day last March 21, the Kamuning Bakery and Cafe's Pandesal Forum invited two of the country's esteemed literary figures namely Butch Dalisay and Vim Nadera.

Moderated by Wilson Lee Flores, the forum had Nadera and Dalisay share their respective insights not just on poetry, but also in literature, specifically Philippine literature, in general.

Vim Nadera, the pioneer of Poetry Therapy in the country, acknowledged that the balagtasan has given way to FlipTop. These rap battles have been the rage for the past decade or so and is said to be what the balagtasan has evolved into. He also recognized the emergence of spoken word artists who have capitalized on hugot or the pent up, innermost feelings, mostly of hurt, then expressing them in front of an audience. Nadera then said that the currently popular forms and their respective young writers should be welcomed into the fold. The old guard should recognize their works and then use their experience and knowledge to raise the level of the young writers in order for them to be globally competitive.

Butch Dalisay also echoed Nadera's sentiments on Philippine poetry and literature's aim to be a global force. Dalisay laments that poetry has been divorced from creative writing and that poets have receded into the academia. Instead of writing for people at large, they wrote more for themselves, hence it is now hard to find a poet who is well known and admired by the masses. As one of the rare Filipino contemporary writers published internationally, Dalisay shared the advice to young writers hoping to crack the global market to be the best Filipino writer of their time.

Efforts by the government to promote Philippine poetry and literature were also discussed during the forum. Beverly Siy, from the Intertextual Division of the Cultural Center of the Philippines was invited to join the forum to present the upcoming Performatura Festival happening on March 31-April 2, 2023 at the Tanghalang Ignacio B. Gimenez (Black Box Theater).

Siy, who has been one of the most active promoters of Philippine literature online during the pandemic, laid out the numerous activities lined up at this festival of written words and performances that is returning on-site this year after an online edition back in 2021.

Beverly Siy, Vim Nadera, Butch Dlisay, and Wilson Lee Flores 

Here's a brief line up of what is in store at Performatura this year.

March 31, 2023, Unbox@Blackbox

Festival director Vim Nadera heads the first day with the morning session focusing on literature on social media. Vlogger entrepreneur Carlo Ople launches his creative non-fiction book Suweldo is Not Enough. There will be a panel of speakers, sneaker shoe auction, and a poetry performance by Hannah Leceña.

A celebration of National Women’s Month happens in the afternoon with a turnover ceremony of the printed copies of the book In Certain Seasons: Mothers Write in the Time of COVID with the PEN Philippines and Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines’ Bureau of the Copyright and Related Rights. This will be followed by the launch of the Lila Mga Tula, a poetry book written by women from the Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika at Anyo. Sponsored by the Spark and LILA groups, the launch will offer talks by women writers and literary performances.

Day 1 will be capped by a special film screening of Moral, directed by National Artist for Film Marilou Diaz Abaya and written by National Artist for Film and Broadcast Arts Ricky Lee, who will do a talk back session after the screening. Moderated by Patricia Holgado, this film event is co-presented by the CCP Film, Broadcast and New Media Division and the Film Development Council of the Philippines.

April 1, 2023, The Art of Spoken Word

The Ampalaya Monologues, the Philippines’ premier spoken word collective headed by its founder Mark Ghosn takes charge on the second day with the Spoken Camp, a page-to-stage writing workshop where participants will have the chance to develop their writing skills; the Spoken Fest featuring the hottest spoken word artists, backed by indie music; and the Spoken Night, an open mic session giving a platform to aspiring poets to share their voice and stories.

The second day also gives the spotlight to National Artist for Literature Gemino Abad who will give a talk on performing written poetry.

April 2, 2023, Araw ni Balagtas

The 3rd day pays tribute and celebrates the 149th birth anniversary of Francisco Baltazar.

The last day will feature performances by The Makatas with Ingay Likha battle rap artists Tulala, Zantasa and D.O.C.; a talk by Singaporean literary artist Chris Mooney Singh talks about Balagtasan in the World Literature, a talk by National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario about the significance of Bataan in the life of Balagtas; and performances by teachers and students of Bataan High School for the Arts.

Closing the festival is KamPerformatura’s offering of poetry and performances by the youth participants, kickstarting the Tanghal Makata 2023, the Performatura-born competition.

Judging the cometition are spoken word expert Mark Ghosn, poet performer Kooky Tuason, and authentic mambabalagtas from Bulacan Melandro Pascual to name a few. Tanghali Makata 2021, Librarian Juireo Abela of Lucena City, will be on hand to present the Sam Penaso trophy and laurel sculpture by poet Raul Funilas to the next winner. The closing segment is presented by GSIS Museum, LIRA, and Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas (UMPIL).

Other attractions of the festival include a mini-exhibit by artist Mimi Tecson at the lobby of the CCP Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez. Merchandise booths by artists, writers, and publishers, organized by Pia Perez of The Indie Publishers Collab PH and Mark Ghosn will be on March 31-April 1, 2023 while Artists and entrepreneurs from the Unbox team sell their works on April 2, 2023.

Admission to each segment (performance, book launch, talk, etc.) to Performatura is through a donation of a book of any kind. Donated books will then be handed over to CCP partner libraries.

Dostoevsky Challenge: Celebrating the Russian author's bicentennial

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky

At the start of 2021, I've set out to read the entire works of my favorite author, Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. I should've began with this endeavor once the year started but I kept on delaying it, up until now that the world is celebrating the 200th anniversary of his birth.

Born in Moscow, Russia on November 11, 1821, Dostoevsky is considered as one of the world's literary greats. And with his bicentennial, the timing is perfect for me to go through his entire bibliography, read about his life, and write in here about my thoughts and the impact his works have had on me.

The first Dostoevsky work that I ever read was Crime and Punishment way back in the early 1990s through the Constance Garnett translation published by Bantam Classics that had the iconic Vasily Perov portrait of Dostoevsky on the cover. Some thought that this was way too advanced for me to read but my defiant nature and rebellious streak was already brewing back then and other people's thoughts regarding my reading preferences was the least of my concern.

After finishing Crime and Punishment, I stocked up on his works that were available at the time which were the Bantam Classics editions of Notes from Underground, Idiot, and The Brothers Karamazov. I wondered then why Demons/Devils/The Possessed was not available even though it is considered as one his four great novels.

It was only upon the turn of the century when bookstores in here began to be more sophisticated that I started to see not just Demons and his other short story collections but also other translations and editions of his major works apart from the usual Bantam/Signet Classics releases.

Since then, I've had my hand on various English translations of Dostoevsky's major works. I even have copies of them in the original Russian although they serve no purpose other than to look pretty on the shelf giving me the satisfaction that I have them in my collection. It would thrilling if I could get my hands on a Filipino translation but my search has been unfruitful so far.

So to kick off this Dostoevsky Challenge, I am going back to where it all began for me, the Constance Garnett translation of Crime and Punishment released by Bantam Classics. The plan is for me to post regular, hopefully weekly, updates in this blog regarding my progress with whichever Dostoevsky work that I am reading at the moment. I will also cover other related stuff like comicbook/manga and movie adaptations of his works.

This particular Bantam Classics edition features an introduction by Joseph Frank a noted biographer and scholar of Dostoevsky. I remember getting all confused when I first attempted to read his introduction since it referenced key parts of the novel. I had yet to read the book in its entirety so I couldn't make any sense of what he wrote. But I did go back to rereading the introduction once I managed to finish the novel. And it became instrumental in my later appreciation of introductions, forewords, afterwords, literary essays that are included in books that can truly enrich the reading experience beyond the main text.

Speaking of Joseph Frank, I will read simultaneously with Crime and Punishment his one volume biography Dostoevsky: A Writer in His Time so that I can have a deeper understanding and greater appreciation of Dostoevsky and his works.

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Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

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Dostoevsky: A Writer in His Time by Joseph Frank

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Literary webinar to discuss a pair of women writers from Italy and the Philippines

On the occasion of the 150th birth anniversary of Grazia Deledda, the Embassy of Italy in the Philippines, the Philippine Italian Association (PIA), the National Library of the Philippines (NLP), the Ateneo de Manila University, and the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines present Women Writing on the Margins, a literary webinar happening on November 22, 2021, 3:30 PM.

This online conference focuses on two women writers, Grazia Deledda from Sardinia, Italy and Magdalena Jalandoni from Iloilo, Philippines, and will discuss their lives, works, and their identification with their respective home-islands.

Hosted by the National Library of the Philippines, the webinar features two speakers, Dr. Stefania Lucamente from Italy and Dr. Alice Gonzalez from the Philippines who will discuss both Deledda and Jalandoni with a particular attention to the peculiar topics of their respective works: a sense of self and country, identity and traditions, women and society, language and history.

Dr. Stefania Lucamante, Professor of Italian Contemporary Literature at the University of Cagliari (Italy) and long time researcher in the representation of history and memory in Women’s contemporary literature and the role of passion in literature, will discuss From Marianna Sirca to Cosima: Transformation within Tradition in the Novelistic and Short-Story Works of Sardinian Writer and Nobel Prize Winner Grazia Deledda.

Dr. Alice Gonzalez, award-winning fictionist and faculty member of the University of the Philippine Visayas, will discuss three of Magdalena Jalandoni’s novels to show the processes by which women carve out their identities within and against the gender codes of a society in her paper Magdalena Jalandoni: Negotiating the Woman’s Subject-Position in Fiction and in Life.

An open forum moderated by the Ateneo Institute of Literary Arts and Practices will follow the presentations.

Interested participants can register through this link: https://bit.ly/NLPPIAWWM

Women Writing on the Margins is the second symposium on Italian literature in the Philippines hosted by the National Library of the Philippines. This follows the well-received conference Dante in the Philippines. Teaching and Translating Dante Today webinar held back in March 2021. This project is supported financially by the Embassy of Italy as part of its program for the XXI Week of the Italian Language 2021.

CCP Intertextual launches e-book on Filipino mothers’ experiences in time of Covid-19

With the year 2020 clearly defined by the Covid-19 pandemic, it is inevitable that literature coming out from this period will have the health crisis as its primary focus.

The Cultural Center of the Philippines through its Intertextual Division, is set to launch one such work, an e-book collection of pieces by Filipino mothers about their respective experiences during the pandemic.

Entitled In Certain Seasons: Mothers Write In The Time of COVID, this e-book will be launched on January 23, 2021, 2:00 PM, via the official Facebook pages of the CCP, CCP Intertextual Division, and the Philippine PEN.

The Filipino mother writers whose work are collected in the e-book are:

Kora Dandan Albano (Nanay)

Nikki Alfar (Surviving Ourselves)

Merlie Alunan (Pilgrim Heart)

Alma Anonas-Carpio (Pandemic Kitchen)

Lualhati Bautista (Usapang Rape)

Adelle Chua (Nest Never Empty)

Jhoanna Lynn B. Cruz (Some Terms of Reference for a Pandemic)

J. G. Dimaranan (Sa Wakas)

May Dolis (Ang Iyong Ama)

Heidi Emily Eusebio-Abad (Isang Panalangin)

Rowena P. Festin (Tanawin Mula sa Aking Bintana)

Geraldine Flores-Ingco (Braso ni Mercedes)

Christine V. Lao (Violin Practice)

Babeth Lolarga (Dreaming of When It's Over)

Maricel Padua Lopez (Sabay: Buhay-Guro, Buhay-Nanay)

Gina Lumauig (When Kindness Becomes Contagious)

Ruth Elynia Mabanglo (Pamamaalam)

Liwliwa Malabed (Mahal Kong Sampinit)

Princess Malonzo (Linggo)

Alma Cruz Miclat (Lola Love in the Pandemic)

Banaue Miclat-Janssen (Learning in the Time of Covid-19)

Aimee Morales (Mother Panawagan)

Reina Mae Nasino (Mensahe ng Pasasalamat at Panawagan)

Marot Nelmida-Flores (Life-Changing)

Eunice Barbara Novio (Yet, We Had Each Other)

Rica Paloma-Espiritu (Chicken Soup)

Mae Ann Reginaldo (Mga Lalaki sa Cubao sa Panahon ng Lockdown)

Rae Rival (Paliligo sa Bakuran)

Hope Sabanpan-Yu (The Garden is Always There)

Adelma Salvador (Bisikleta)

Anna Felicia C. Sanchez (Snapshots from the Pandemic Summer)

Aida F. Santos (Being a Mother in the Underground)

Heidi B. Sarno (Ponx Not Dead)

Lee Sepe (Sa Bawat Bukas)

Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz (Cocooning with No Complaints)

Eleanor Strata (Shelved)

Angela Stuart Santiago (Way to Live)

Almayrah A. Tiburon (Pagluluwal)

Mia Tijam (Directing Grace)

Winnie Velasquez (Takipsilim ni Granny Google)

Lalaine F. Yanilla-Aquino (Roller Coaster of Emotions, Blessings in Disguise, at Reversal of Roles).

Together with the Philippine PEN, the book project aims to understand the importance and the role of women, specifically mothers, and their literature during the global crisis, and promote the narratives of women who are mothers, highlighting that women can be both child-raisers and artists amid the struggles of being a parent.

In Certain Seasons: Mothers Write In The Time of COVID is edited by Che Sarigumba and Jenny Ortuoste and features a cover by Imelda Cajipe Endaya. The book also includes artworks by Imelda Morales, Jenny Ortuoste, Kora Dandan Albano and Chua Keng Keng – Lua.

A copy of the e-book can be availed for free by visiting the CCP Intertextual Division Facebook page, by sending an e-mail to ccpintertextualdivision@gmail.com, or by texting 0919-317-5708.