The Dark Chest Redux

After all these years, I’m still at it.

As the old saying goes, time flies by so fast, and it is with a bemused revelation that two years had passed since I last posted anything in this dark alley, my book blog.

The Many Hobbits

It’s a big day for J.R.R. Tolkien fans here in the Philippines for today marks the release (yes, our country is ahead of the worldwide screening date, just how swell is that!) of the film adaptation of the classic children’s …

Pinoy and Proud of It!

“If you don’t blow your own horn, someone will use it as a spittoon.” — Ken Blanchard One of the things that give me a sense of accomplishment (of sorts) is this year’s output of reading Filipiniana. Going over my …

Then I Come to the End

And so four months and three days have come to pass when I have concluded my reading of the singular adventures of Sherlock Holmes and his loyal friend and chronicler Dr John H. Watson in the world of crime. It …

The Book That Launched a Thousand Journeys

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with one small step.” The famous Chinese proverb above perfectly describes my voyage as reader for I can’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for that one book, that one small …

Paying my Honors to the KING

Since September began to roll I know I had it coming. From the time when I thought up of the Author of the Month blog feature I know I have to do it. And so I will not beat around …

The First Filipino Reader Conference

September 14, 2011 — more than the anticipation that mark this day as the 32nd Manila International Book Fair opened its door to the public at large was the excitement mounting when book enthusiasts all over Metro Manila, who opted …

Celebrating a Year of Wonders

As much as anything else September is a month that has by now become so very special to me. More so as I am pleased to announce Gentle Readers that today, this humble spot in cyberspace tucked in the dark …

Look up! It’s a New Header!

September means many things to many people. For some of our Gentle Readers living across the world it means the start of the school year. To others living farther from the equator in the northern hemisphere it heralds the coming …

The Weird, Grotesque, and Gothic this August

It’s been months now since I last read a Horror book, but the “Voice,” my incorporeal guide and eternally influential Book-Muse, obnoxiously yanks my sleeves and lets me focus my gaze elsewhere — elsewhere meaning a fantasy book (it’s been …

An Awesome Year Indeed!

April 10 — to others it was just another ordinary day, but for the members of Goodreads-The Filipino Group it is a day to celebrate as Sunday marks the group’s first year Meet Up Anniversary. Reminiscing about it a bit, …

When Luck Comes Knocking Once Again

Lady luck seems to have left my side whenever I do book hunts these past few days, I said to a good friend via chat yesterday, and every trip to Booksale during the previous weeks yields nada. Seeing the same …

The Start of Something “New”

The start of the New Year made me itch to do something new. Well, it’s not relatively “new” in the whole sense of the word since this feature that I’m going to introduce here have been done time and again …

First Filipino Friday Post

The Filipino Book Bloggers posted some really interesting set of questions down in their blog. So I thought this would be a proper venue to air of some my odd reading quirks — and to make way for my first …