CECILIA MANGUERRA BRAINARD: PHILIPPINE AMERICAN WRITER CALIFORNIA CEBU
ALA CARTE FOOD AND FICTION
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A La Carte is the winner
of the prestigious Gourmand Award
2008 as the Best Food Literature Book from the
Philippines, and received third place in the International Gourmand Award help
in London
"A menu of stories to suit your every craving! That’s A la Carte: Food & Fiction. This book fills a hunger in Philippine literature for fantasy, hyper-reality, romance, mystery … but with a good measure of culinary flavoring mixed in."
Felice Prudente Sta. Maria, culinary heritage advocate and writer
"Here is a book guaranteed to satisfy even the most discriminating taste,
but also to make readers hungry for more stories, characters, insights, and
recipes. Fact, fiction, fantasy, and food mix in a feast for the mind, the heart,
the palate, and the soul. There are many well-known writers in the anthology,
but it is not so much who writes as what is written that makes this book a must-read,
just as it is not so much the chef or the cook that makes a recipe to die for,
but the dish itself. Enjoy the 25-course banquet."
Isagani R. Cruz, The Philippine Star
"Books on food are quite popular these days and
we are glad that recent
publications have gone beyond mere recipes to evoke what Proust called a
‘remembrance of things past.’ "
Ambeth R. Ocampo
Chairman, National Commission for Culture and the Arts
Chairman, National Historical Institute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOOK REVIEW OF A LA CARTE: FOOD & FICTION
BY ANNA BARBARA L. LORENZO, Reporter, Business World Weekender, March 2-3,
2007
A FEAST OF FILIPINO FOOD TALES
As if choosing ingredients for a delicate dish, writer
Cecilia Manguerra
Brainard and publisher Marily Ysip Orosa went through a meticulous selection
process for their short story collection.
They sent out press releases and invitations through
the Internet, reaching
Filipino writers abroad.
"We first selected 12 stories. We were surprised
because they were very
serious. I realized that food brings up memories about families and relations
and
sometimes these relations can be very complex," Ms. Brainard said in an
interview.
When the first batch turned out to be serious stories
coming mostly from
female writers, Ms. Brainard said she encouranged more male writers to send
their stories.
"I was really looking for stories with good, strong
character development.
And of course, they had to fit the theme. I have no compuctions about
rejecting work that doesn’t fit. Name does not sway me. They know it’s
not
personal," Ms. Brainard said.
The stories came in not just from Manila but also from
Dumaguete, Cebu,
Davao, Chicago, Singapore, Hawaii and San Francisco.
Hence, the book, A La Carte: Food and Fiction, is a feast
of Filipino tales
coming from different perspectives.
Like a full menu, A La Carte first offers breads, appetizers
and salad,
followed by soup, rice and main dishes. Stories inspired by desserts come in
last.
The stories kick off with an easy read, a short autobiographical
account by
Edna Weisser who serves classic Pinoy snacks with the German flair in
"Merienda Alemania."
Like warm and rich soup served on a cold and rainy day,
Susan Evangelista’s
"Pumpkin Soup" and Nadine Sarreal’s "No Salt" offer
heart-warming tales
revolving on love, grief, comfort and understanding.
Carlos Cortes tells about his fondness for puso in his
story "Hanging Rice"
and his first trip to Manila where the handy packet of rice wrapped in woven
coconut leaves does not exist.
The collection also includes a cute romantic tale of
a man who falls in love
with the waitress who serves his chicken inasal in Ian Rosales Casocot’s
"Pedro and the Chickens."
With food and family being associated most of the time,
A La Carte also has
stories that involve abuses within members of the family, as found in "Two
Drifters" by Veronica Montes, "The Fish" by Reine Arcache Melvin
and "Kitchen
Secrets" by Shirlie Mae Mamaril Choe.
Getting inspiration from Laura Esquivel’s Like
Water for Chocolate, A La
Carte has included recipes to go hand-in-hand with the stories in the collection.
This is a nice value-added touch for lovers of literature
and culinary arts.
After all, one might just be inspired to make traditional Filipino favorites
like pork adobo after reading Dean Francis Alfar’s "Sabados Con Fray
Villalobos" or lumpia after Jose Dalisay, Jr.’s "Wok Man."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Philippines wins Gourmand World Awards
ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
From Philippine Star
Three Philippine books garnered major awards at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards held last April 13 at the Olympia Theater in London. The brainchild of Edouard Cointreau in 1995, Gourmand is the only truly international food book award. It not only gives awards but also promotes its finalists at major book fairs around the world, thereby assisting publishers and authors expand their markets at no cost to them. Cointreau believes that people of different nations can find their common humanity in the study of cuisine and its related realms.
The Governor-General’s Kitchen: Philippine Culinary Vignettes and Period Recipes, 1521 to 1935 is now one of the two Best Culinary History books in the world published from 2006 to 2007. Written by Felice Prudente Sta. Maria and released by Anvil Publishing, the book competed with national winners from 24 countries in the Food History Book category. Designed by Guillermo Ramos, The Governor-General’s Kitchen was selected the Best Designed Philippine Cookbook among Philippine entries. Turkey won first place, with Denmark and Australia tied in third place.
Foodlore and Flavor: Inside the South East Asian Kitchen took third place in the Asian Cuisine Book category in which 17 countries competed. The book is by Tan Su-Lyn with photographs by Neal Oshima for the Philippine publishing house of Artpostasia. The cookbook has 80 recipes from 10 Southeast Asian nations by the most respected food writers and experts. United Arab Emirates and Austria won first and second rankings, respectively. The United Kingdom’s Wild Wild East by Bobby Chinn for Conran Octopus Publishing tied for third place.
Gourmand Award noted that there are “excellent writers in the Philippines.” The book A La Carte: Food and Fiction published by Anvil took third place, with 22 countries competing in the Food Literature Category. Collected and edited by two former Maryknoll classmates, Cecilia Manguerra Brainard and Marily Orosa, the stories and recipes by 25 authors “reveal Filipino culture in a unique way,” writes Gourmand. Greece and Germany won first and second place, respectively with Colombia’s book Fogon de Negros by German Patiño for Convenio Andres Bello publishing tying with the Philippines.
Filipino photographer Chester Ong, who specializes in architecture and food photography, provides images for Hot Tomatoes by Angelo Macdonnell for Elite Champ Ltd. The book published in Hong Kong where Ong is based now, won third place in the Single Subject Category.
There were 107 countries with thousands of books that competed this year. All finalists are now exhibited at the London Book Fair and will be displayed at the Frankfurt Book Fair in October. Gourmand records that in 2005, sales of cookbooks in the world increased at a steady 5 percent a year since 1994. There were 24,000 new titles that year, double of ten years earlier.
I remember when “the global village” was still a prediction. Today broadcasting, electronic media, and air travel have made the global village a reality. As we become increasingly interested in our planet, it is time for the Philippines to assert its rich and hospitable culture more in world media. Food books are certainly one way to appreciate the Philippines and its people. Congratulations to our country’s winners for bringing Philippine cuisine to the attention of the world market. Gourmand Awards deserves our appreciation for spotting the fine work of our writers, photographers and publishers.
E-mail questions/comments
to cbrainard@aol.com
Copyright © 2009 Cecilia
Manguerra Brainard
