This document provides biographical information about several prominent Filipino authors and discusses some of their notable works. It mentions F. Sionil José, one of the most widely read Filipino authors in English who wrote about class struggles and colonialism. It also discusses novels by José like "Po-on" and short stories by Genoveva Matute and novels by Peter Bacho that explore the Filipino immigrant experience. The document also provides information on writers like Cecilia Brainard and Ambeth Ocampo as well as lists some recommended Pinoy literature works.

1. 

3. 
What is
“Philippine Literature”?

5. 
F. Sionil José or Francisco Sionil
José (born December 3, 1924) is one of the most
widely-read Filipino writers in the English language.
His novels and short stories depict the social
underpinnings of class struggles and colonialism in
Filipino society. José's works - written in English -
have been translated into 22 languages, including
Korean, Indonesian, Russian, Latvian, Ukrainian and
Dutch.
"Authors like myself choose the city as a setting for their fiction
because the city itself illustrates the progress or the
sophistication that a particular country has achieved. Or, on the
other hand, it might also reflect the kind of decay, both social and
perhaps moral, that has come upon a particular people.“
-F. Sionil José, BBC.com, July 30, 2003

6. 
is a 2001 novel written by Filipino
National Artist F. Sionil José . It
is about Benjamin "Ben" Singkol, who is described as
“perhaps the most interesting character” created by the
author. Based on José's novel, Singkol is a renowned
`novelist who wrote the book entitled "Pain", an
autobiography written during the Japanese occupation of
the Philippines. Through the fictional novel Singkol recalled
the hardships experienced by the Filipinos during the
occupation. Singkol was described to be a coward, a "supot"
or an uncircumcised man who did not only run away from
such a “ritual of manhood” but also evaded his “foxhole in
Bataan when the Japanese soldiers were closing in”. Singkol
was a “runner” or “evader” throughout much of his lifetime,
while being haunted by the “poverty of his boyhood” and of
the “treachery that he may have committed” in the past. In
1982, Singkol began receiving letters from a Japanese named
Haruko Kitamura.
“Ben Singkol”

7. 
Vibora! (literally meaning
"Viper!") is a 2007 another novel
written by F. Sionil José. The novel
narrates the life of an accidental hero,
Benjamin Singkol, during the
Japanese occupation of the
Philippines after escaping from
Bataan during the Second World
War. Singkol in turn narrates the life
of Artemio "Vibora" Ricarte whose
identity is being questioned: whether
a patriot or a collaborator to the
Japanese occupiers.

8. 
Sherds(“fragments of pottery” or "potsherds")
is a 2007 short novel or novelette written by Filipino National
Artist for Literature and multi-awarded author F. Sionil José.
According to Elmer A. Ordoñez, a writer from The Manila
Times, in Sherds José achieved “lyrical effects”, specially in the
novel’s final chapters, by putting into “good use” Joseph
Conrad’s and Ford Madox Ford’s so-called progression d’effet
(literally "progression of the effect"). Sherds is the latest and last
novel by José. According to The Atlantic National
Correspondent James Fallows, the novel is dedicated to the
author’s wife Teresita José. The novel, which can be read in
one sitting, was described by Li-an de la Cruz-Busto, a reporter
for Sun.Star Davao as “very light but candid and insightful”, a
description that complements The Manila Times reporter Perry
Gil S. Mallari’s calling José’s Sherds as an “easy read and a
guaranteed page-turner”. A novel composed of twelve
chapters with a "tight and palpable" narrative pacing, Sherds
deals with topics related to "personal conscience, greed and the
position of art" in social class struggle, thus serving as a
cogitation on "what is wrong" with the Philippines as a nation.
José wrote Sherds while he was in Japan.

9. 
She is a multiawarded writer, publisher
and cultural icon from the Philippines. She
was born in Manila, has a B.A. from St.
Theresa's College-Manila, and an M.A.
from the Ateneo de Manila
University.Gilda Cordero-Fernando was
born on June 4, 1932.
Cordero-Fernando has two landmark collection of
short stories: The Butcher, The Baker and The Candlestick
Maker (1962) and A Wilderness of Sweets (1973). These
books have been compiled and reissued later as Story
Collection (1994). Another book, Philippine Food and
Life, was published in 1992.
“Gilda Cordero-Fernando”
Cordero-Fernando has also worn numerous other hats as a visual artist,
fashion designer, playwright, art curator and producer. In February 2000,
she produced a hugely successful extravaganza entitled Luna: An Aswang
Romance.

10. 
"Luna:An Aswang Romance"
appears to be yet another spin-off of the ageless
tale of star-crossed lovers. However, scrutiny
reveals an all-together different twist, one
distinctly Filipino in its flavor and pungency.
Gilda Cordero Fernando’s production of the
Palanca award-winning play by Rody Vera
delves into the fascination with the
preternatural netherworld and its hosts. It
delightedly gives the mythical aswang,
heretofore portrayed as a mindless, grasping
creature, a new slant: the aswang Luna has a
keen intellect, a near aristocratic lineage and the
prerequisite complicated romance.
Luna realizes this in the end as she achieves the
wholeness she craved only when she ceased struggling
against her true identity and accepted her birthright. And,
as love stories traditionally go, she wins mortal Mio’s
undivided love in spite of everything.

11. 
(b. 1961) is a multi-awarded Filipino
historian, academic, journalist, and
author best known for his writings
about Philippines' national hero José
Rizal, and for his bi-weekly editorial
page column in the Philippine Daily
Inquirer, "Looking Back." He became
the chair of the Philippines' National
Historical Institute in 2002 and of the
National Commission for Culture and
the Arts in 2005.(less)
“Ambeth R. Ocampo”

12. 
 "This compilation of essays strays from
my 19th century comfort zone. In this
book we go back to a time before written
records, to a time before history.
Prehistoric Philippines
by Ambeth R. Ocampo
It is a reminder of Manuel’s challenging
remark: 'where History ends,
Anthropology begins.'"

13. 
(January 3, 1915 – March 21, 2009)
was a Filipino author. In 1951, she
was the recipient of the first ever
Palanca Award for Short Story in
Filipino, for her short story "Kuwento
ni Mabuti", which has been cited as
the most anthologized Tagalog
language short-story
“Genoveva E. Matute”

14. 
(February 7, 1893 – March 21, 1934) was a Filipino composer known for his
Kundiman songs, especially before the Second World War. Nicanor
Abelardo was born in' San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan. His mother belonged
to a family of artists in Guagua', the Hensons. He was introduced to music
when he was five years old, when his father taught him the solfeggio and
the banduria. At the age of 8, he was able to compose his estoryahe first
work, a waltz entitled "Ang Unang Buko," which was dedicated to his
grandmother. At the age of 13, he was already playing at saloons and
cabarets in Manila. At age 15, he was already teaching in barrio schools in
San Ildefonso and San Miguel Bulacan. All of these happened even before
young Abelardo finally took up courses under Guy F. Harrison and Robert
Schofield at the UP Conservatory of Music in 1916. By 1924, following a
teacher’s certificate in science and composition received in 1921.
“Nicanor Sta. Ana Abelardo”
Years later, he ran a boarding school for young musicians, and among his
students were National Artist Antonino Buenaventura, Alfredo Lozano and
Lucino Sacramento. In the field of composition he is known for his redefinition of
the kundiman, bringing the genre to art-song status. Among his works were
"Nasaan Ka Irog," "Magbalik Ka Hirang," and "Himutok." He died in 1934 at the
age of 41, leaving a collection of more than 140 works.[1]

15. 
is a writer and teacher best known for his
book Cebu which won the American Book
Award. The book is considered literary
significant among Filipino American literature
because of its explorations in themes such as
neocolonialism and Filipino-American
identity.Bacho also won the Washington
Governor’s Writers Award for Dark Blue Suit a
collection of stories.
“Peter Bacho”
Many of Bacho's books deal with the Filipino experience
in the United States. He considers himself an "old
Filipino writer". Bacho teaches in the Liberal Studies
Program at The Evergreen State College, Tacoma
Campus. He is also a lecturer in the Interdisciplinary
Arts and Sciences program at the University of
Washington Tacoma.

16. 
Nelson is obsessed with avoiding work, long-term
relationships and all other forms of responsibility. Sex,
Nelson's other major obsession, is what brings him to the
Philippines, having heard the archipelago's bawdy lore from
a former mistress he had shared with his father. With dark
humor and insight, Bacho explores the clash of American
and Filipino culture, as Nelson soon finds himself pulled
between Anita and Marta, two tango-dancing matriarchs,
and embroiled in his own private heart of darkness. The
resolution of this increasingly violent menage-a-trois takes
place within the context of a talent contest, a civil war, a
coronation and an exploding presidential candidate.
Nelson's Run
Paperback – February 1,2002 by Peter Bacho(Author)

17. 
 Leaving Yesler tells the story of Bobby Vincente, a
“one drop of black blood Pinoy” looking for a
way out of the Yesler Terrace housing project,
the only home he’s ever known. Bobby is not the
first in his family to want out of Yesler Terrace.
It’s the dream as well of his aging father,
Antonio, a former prizefighter who settled in
Seattle as part of the first wave of Filipino
immigration to the city in the late 20s—part of a
generation who “hope for the best but get ready
for the worst.”
Leaving Yesler
by Peter BachoJuly 2, 2010

18. 
 is an award-winning author and editor of
nineteen books. She co-founded PAWWA or
Philippine American Women Writers and
Artists; she also founded Philippine
American Literary House. Brainard's works
include the World War II novel, When the
Rainbow Goddess Wept, Magdalena, and
Woman With Horns and Other Stories. She
edited several anthologies including Fiction
by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction
by Filipinos in America, and two volumes of
Growing Up Filipino I and II, books used by
educators
“Cecilia Manguerra Brainard”

19. 
“This is a rich and generous collection of
stories. They spring from various sources--
autobiographical, anecdotal and experimental. It
entertains the casual reader, instructs aspiring and
practising writers alike, and enriches the country's
culture. “Cecilia’s style is even more spare or
sparing, letting the words do the barest possible
work of depicting action, description, or sequencing
the events in the collected narratives…I’d call this
style, which seems fairly unique to her (even when
compared to that of old masters like Bulosan and
Gonzalez), as scenographic, to borrow a term from
cinema.” ~ Oscar V. Campomanes, Professor,
Ateneo de Manila University
VIGAN AND OTHER STORIES
is a short story collection by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard 2011)

20. 
Angelica's Daughters is a collaborative novel by five
established Filipina writers, called a "dugtungan." A
dugtungan is a genre of Tagalog novel popular early in the
20th century, in which each writer creates a chapter and
hands it off to the next, who writes another chapter without
direction. The result, in this case, is an ensemble
performance that contains something of the exhilaration of
theatrical improv. One watches these accomplished authors
inventively weave a historical romance, creating gripping
heroines and turns of plot, crossing decades and national
boundaries, tapping into cultural roots of the Philippines,
Spain and America. Reading Angelica's Daughters is a
gripping experience.~ Brian Ascalon Roley, Author of
American Son
Angelica's Daughters:A Dugtungan
Novel by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

21. 
“Cecilia's Diary: 1962-1969 (memoir, Anvil,
2003)”
“ Fundamentals of Creative Writing" (Anvil, 2009)
Out of Cebu: Essays and Personal Prose (personal essays) “
“University of San Carlos Press, 2012) Philippine
Woman in America (New Day Publishers, 1991)
Non-fiction which she wrote

22. 
Pinoy Literature Top10
October 3rd,2011
here are the Top 10 List of Pinoy
(informal term for Filipino) Literature
recommended by Gel G. Galang of Juice.ph
featuring Palanca Awards Winners and
National Artists:

23. 
1. “GAGAMBA” by F. Sionil Jose
2. “THE TWISTED SERIES” by Jessica Zafra
3. “ILUSTRADO” by Miguel Syjuco
4. “MY SAD REPUBLIC” by Eric Gamalinda
5. “SOLEDAD’S SISTER” by Butch Dalisay
6. “MONDOMANILA” by Norman Wilwayco
7. “IN THE COMPANY OF STRANGERS” by Michelle
Cruz Skinner
8. “NEWS OF THE SHAMAN” by Karl de Mesa
9. “THE SKY OVER DIMAS” by Vince Groyon
10. “THE WOMAN WHO HAD TWO NAVELS” by
Nick Joaquin