Reading the heat away

It's been a lazy day. Wrote a writing sample for an editor. Still not sure if I got the job. I really really really want the post. It's 86 degrees F in Manila. The heat is unbelievable! Spent my afternoon rereading Austenland by Shannon Hale while I'm in the middle of The Spies of Warsaw. I like to take a breather when my current read is a bit dragging. My hair still wet from the lukewarm shower (that'll make you feel all the more stickier for having a bath), a glass of cold orange juice and the windows wide open.

Deja vu

This book gave me deja vu. Going through the day Sam died seven times wouldn't sound appealing, especially because she's the popular kid at highschool who hangs out with her girl friends and makes fun of everybody else, a lot like Mean Girls. But then each day she wakes up, she's a different person, still figuring out how whatever-it-is works. Each day comes with little changes, little shifts, but each day closes with the inevitable end. Sam soon makes a hard turn, angry at the world, realizing she was a hopeless case, thinking that it'll be over when the day ends, when she dies. She wakes up again and comes to the conclusion of what she had to do, to save herself or someone else's life. It's a journey of a person trying to be better towards a heartbreaking end.

On the writing style, Oliver writes an abundance of metaphors. I was on a highlighting spree! Here's some of my favorite lines:

Every day is a blank page

“You must write every single day of your life … . you must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads … . may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. and out of that love, remake a world” - Zen in the Art of Writing, Ray Bradbury

Nostalgic week

- Finished reading Before I Fall, book review coming up!

- Reread The Man Who Loved Jane Austen and wishing I could also be sucked in back to 1810 and meet Jane Austen or have my own Mr. Darcy

- Went on a 4-day vacation with friends at Ilocos where time seemed to stand still - old churches, museums, spanish colonial houses, cobble stone streets, kalesas! I'm in love!

- Wishing, praying, hoping, that Filipino writers would write more historical fiction. I don't know if there are many but I only know two, Dead Stars by Paz Benitez Marquez (my all time favorite) and May Day Eve by Nick Joaquin. We have a very rich history and I would love to read it in print. For the meantime, I'll be saving a spot on my bookshelf.

- Here's some photos from my Ilocos trip!

Paoay Church is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Filipino painter. Juan Luna's ancestral home. He painted the Spolarium.

This grand house sits in Calle Crisologo in Vigan where spanish colonial houses were preserved. I wonder how beautiful it was then, who lived in it, what's the story of the house.

During the Spanish colonial time, rich Filipino families lived in Calle Crisologo. The families preserved their ancertral houses throughout the centuries.

The Bantay Bell Tower was built in 1591 as part of the city's defense. Bantay means "to guard" or "to protect". You can climb to the top of the tower where the view is breathtaking.

- I want to travel back in time so I can see how the Philippines looked then.

- Trying out bullets for my updates! How's your week been? :)

OD on metaphors

Have you ever looked up at the sky long enough, your stomach dips like it does before falling? You suddenly feel the earth has shifted and you're falling, falling up into the clouds, its side tinged with light like its dipped in the melting sun.

It's the same feeling at night, when you look up, the sky has transformed into a big black veil, a streak of purple vanishing in the horizon. The stars look back at you, winking, blinking, waiting. Then you have the urge to fall up into the sky. It feels like falling. Like running instead of walking. You're falling instead of flying.

When you look up at the sky, it doesn't matter which way is up or down, you want to fall up into the clouds and the stars. You want to jump from the earth up into the sky, not fly, like a big blanket to save your fall.

Day 30 – Your favorite book of all time

And last but not the least for the 30 Day Book Challenge, though I didn't went by the one-for-each-day-30-days-rule, my favorite book of all time is, drum roll please!

The Winchester Austen edition

Got this for my 18th birthday with my 18th birthday cashmoney. I had 18 books instead of 18 candles for my debut so my reading list was full that year. 1 more book won't hurt right? It comes in a black pseudo-leather jacket with elastic closure. Includes four introductions by renowned Austen scholars, coloured illustrations, and a map of Jane Austen's England! Imagine if you have all six of Austen's novels in this edition on your bookshelf. Aaaaaaaaaahhhhh.

P.S. I like buying different covers/editions of my favorite books. Especially if the covers are beautiful.

If you were here beside me, instead of New York

I do love a song with beautiful lyrics. Songs are like poetry. Press play! I promise you won't regret it. Perfect for thoughtful nights, for times when your mind drifts between reading and random thoughts.

New York by Snow Patrol

Day 29 – A book everyone hated but you liked

I had to read every spine on my bookshelf for this one. I had to delay because I couldn't get an answer. I'm not really spontaneous when it comes to books, in fact I'm picky. I'm a sucker for historical fiction - 1920s to 1940s, WWII, spies. Classics - mostly Austen, The Great Gatsby. Nicholas Sparks. Young Adult - not like those teenage novels filled with sex, angst, and hormones.

But anyway, everybody hates Twilight (I realized I didn't liked it so much either after all the hype). Out of the Twilight series, I liked New Moon best, even though Edward was a no-show for months and pages. So yeah, I was a bit of a Team-Edward-kind-of-fan. It's just a phase everybody goes through, like puberty. Haha!

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