COVER STORY: Five Filipina authors and their books to read this month

5Filipina Authors to Follow and Connect With

Read their books in celebration of Filipino American History Month. Learn more about the Filipino experience through their work.

MARIVI SOLIVEN BLANCO

A San Diego-based award-winning author, Marivi often draws inspiration for her writings from her 20-year job as a Tagalog-English telephonic interpreter. She has shed light on the racist laws against Filipinos and is an advocate for writers of color.

Learn more about Marivi at: marivisoliven.com

Books: The Mango Bride Spooky Mo: Your Scary C-nt

REINE ARCACHE MELVIN A resident of New York, Reine’s work focuses on the Philippines and the lives of Filipinos both at home and abroad. She won a Philippine National Book Award for her fiction that was translated into French in 2003.

Learn more about Reine at:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reine_Arcache_Melvin

Books: A Normal Life and Other Stories The Betrayed

Photo credit: Jamilla Yipp Photography Resident of Chicago, Mia loves books, baking, and badass women. She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture.

Learn more about Mia at: miapmanansala.com Books: Arsenic and Adobo Homicide and Halo-Halo Blackmail and Bibingka

JESSICA HAGEDORN

Born in 1949 in Manila, Jessica Hagedorn is a modern playwright, poet, and writer. She came to the United States in 1963 to get her education at the American Conservatory Theater training program. She lives in New York City and has won an American Book Award and the Lucille Lotel Foundation fellowship.

Learn more about Jessica at: jessicahagedorn.net Books: Dogeaters Toxicology The Gangster of Love Dream Jungle Danger and Beauty Manila Noir

Books: America Is Not the Heart How to Read Now: Essays ELAINE CASTILLO Born in San Francisco Bay Area, she is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. She is passionate about equality for the people of the Philippines, and that comes out in her work. She was named one of “30 of the Planet’s Most Exciting Young People” by the Financial Times.

Learn more about Elaine at: instagram.com/_elainecastillo