The Filipino Group discussion

Mabuhay, TFG!

This year, our discussions will follow this format: A Brief Introduction to ___________. It could be a specific subgenre, literature from a specific country, a literary award that we haven't explored yet, etc.

Last Saturday, we held our first in-person F2F book discussion of 2023, for Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. Dyan moderated the discussion, which was A Brief Introduction to Food Fiction.

I will be your moderator this month, and this month's theme is A Brief Introduction to Sudanese Literature.

"To those who see with one eye, speak with one tongue, and see things as either black or white, either Eastern or Western."

The March Book of the Month is none other than Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih , a book that Edward Said claims as "one of the six finest novels to be written in modern Arabic literature." This is a reference to Albert Guerard's praise for Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, to which this novel is a counternarrative. Season of Migration to the North is a post-colonial novel set in the Nile river, where a man returns after his studies abroad to find *Mustafa Sa'eed*, an outsider living in his village and someone just like him: an African "tamed" by British colonial education.

"'Everything which happened before my meeting her was a premonition; everything I did after (view spoiler)[I killed her (hide spoiler)] was an apology; not for (view spoiler)[killing her (hide spoiler)], but for the lie that was my life.'"

It's a short novel, ringing at 168 pages for the NYRB edition. I am not aware of any official audiobook versions. Despite its shortness, it manages to touch upon so many subjects: postcolonial Sudanese life, the struggles of Sudanese women, the tension between Western modernity and Islamic and native traditions, and colonial sexual politics.

"Sooner or later they will leave our country just as many people throughout history left many countries. The railways, ships, hospitals, factories, and schools will be ours and we'll speak their language without either a sense of guilt or a sense of gratitude. Once again we shall be as we were - ordinary people - and if we are lies we shall be lies of our own making."

I hope you all enjoy this book as I have. The F2F will be a virtual F2F again - apologies, I am still in the province - and will be held on March 28. I will share the Google Meet link the week leading to the discussion.

"I am no Othello. Othello is a lie."

In the meantime, please join our Facebook group ("Goodreads - TFG") and Discord group ("Goodreads - The Filipino Group"). Our Instagram account is tfg.goodreads.

See you, dear readers, and remember, the Nile River flows north.

Thank you so much for creating this thread, Abdul! :) <3

I hope I can locate a physical copy of this in Fully Booked (view spoiler)[or might as well buy in Amazon for an e-book (hide spoiler)]. Since this is a short-read and an interesting one, I hope I can join in (view spoiler)[and have a discussion with you guys!!! (hide spoiler)]

Sorry for the late reply!

Monique, permission to post here the monthly announcements in case they're not available here? =D

Ella, I think I remember seeing the NYRB editions for this one and Tayeb Salih's other work, The Wedding of Zein, in Fully Booked BGC, but that was three or four years ago. =B Please join us! <3

Hello! Here's the Google Meet link for the F2F this Saturday.

F2F135: Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih
Saturday, March 25 · 2:00 – 5:00pm
Google Meet joining info
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/kka-xkkh-bho

See you there!

Hi, everyone!

I’ll be the discussion moderator for April. This month’s theme is “A Brief Introduction to Korean Literature” and I picked Cho Nam-Joo’s bestselling translated work, “Kim Ji-Young, Born 1982.”

It’s a very short novel and print copies are available at Fully Booked. Digital copies are also available, just let me know. There’s also a film adaptation which you can readily stream and watch on Netflix. 🙂

F2F will be in-person on April 29, Sat. It will be at a private village clubhouse so please message me if you will be attending. Be sure to bring your swimwear! 👙

See you soon!

Annyeong! 🫰🏻

The discussion for F2F136 - A Brief Introduction to Korean Literature: “Kim Ji Young, Born 1982” will be in-person!

It will be this Saturday, April 29 at 2-6 PM at Ametta Place Clubhouse, Pasig City. It’s a private village so if you would like to join, kindly coordinate with Aaron. Bring your swimwear and sunblock, too!

See you this weekend! 🫶🏻

Good morning! I hope everyone is dry and safe this rainy day.

Our theme for the month of September is Asian folktale retelling. We'll be reading The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh.

Online F2f will be on the 30th. Will also post the link here so everyone can join. :)

Hello!

Somebody asked via direct message here in Goodreads if they could get an invite to the Discord channel. I couldn't reply because their profile was set to not accept messages. So here's a link to the Discord for anyone who wants to join:

https://discord.gg/DEePtpe3

The invite will expire in 7 days.

Καλημέρα, TFG! For October, Maria will be moderating our discussion of the book Ithaca by Claire North. It is a retelling of the Odyssey story from Penelope's perspective. The theme for this month is "A Brief Introduction to Odyssean Retellings".

Claire North won critical acclaim for The First Fifteen Lives of Henry August, which won her the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. In 2017, her book The Sudden Appearance of Hope won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. Ithaca is her latest work.

The online F2F will be on PH October 29, 2 PM. (CA October 28, 11 PM.)

See you (before the Penelope's suitors get too out of control)!

Abdul wrote: "Καλημέρα, TFG! For October, Maria will be moderating our discussion of the book Ithaca by Claire North. It is a retelling of the Odyssey story from Penelope's perspective. The theme for this month ..."

Hello Abdul, may I ask for the Discord link to join the group? I think you can make a link that doesn't expire in 7 days and which can be used multiple times. Thank you so much!

Hi, Soya! Sorry I wasn't able to reply quickly. I was able to make a Discord link not expire. Here's the Discord invite: https://discord.com/invite/FuB6ymxsZs

The F2F meeting tomorrow should be PH October 29, Sunday 2PM (CA October 28, Saturday 11PM).

From Maria:

Hello, everyone! Here's the link for tomorrow's F2F142 for Ithaca by Claire North:

Topic: Maria S.'s Zoom Meeting
Time: Oct 28, 2023 11:00 PM Vancouver

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4898219892?...

Meeting ID: 489 821 9892
Passcode: 4v9ueT