THE LIGHT SANG AS IT LEFT
YOUR EYES
by Eileen R. Tabios
Marsh Hawk Press
Copyright 2007
ISBN: 9780979241628
366 pages; Paper; $19.95
Release Date: Fall 2007
Distribution: Small Press Distribution and Baker & Taylor
CONTACT: mheditor@marshhawkpress.org

"On April 11, 2006, Filamore B. Tabios, Sr. died of brain cancer and its complications. In writing about her father, Eileen R. Tabios explores reconciliation with Ferdinand Marcos' legacy through deliberate empathy with the former Philippine dictator's daughter Imee; pays homage to Judas Iscariot whose Gospel, discovered during her vigil by her father's deathbed, reveals him to be the most loyal disciple, instead of greatest betrayer, of Jesus Christ; meditates on the murder statistics of the 20th century's leading killers, from Idi Amin to Adolf Hitler; considers the global Filipina pen pal phenomena; and engages with Dante Aleghieri's Purgatorio.

"Ms. Tabios' first poetry book, which received the Philippines' National Book Award for Poetry, inaugurated a body of works that has given her a reputation for multivalent poetry. [This book] reflects the poet's primal battle with grief, showing how the death of a parent can be one of the most complicated, turbulent and wrenching experiences. It is also her most overtly political work yet, referencing her roots as a "Marcos Baby," a member of the generation who grew up during Marcos' martial law regime. To grapple with her father's death, the author addresses the world which created the context for their engagement. Ultimately, however, The Light Sang As It Left Your Eyes acts as a poet's testament for Joy—that she would cease writing this book only after she resurrected her father, which is to say, Love."

-Publisher's Release

OOV Bookshelf 2007

SEPTEMBER 2007 FEATURE COMMON DESTINY Filipino American Generations by Juanita Tamayo Lott Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street ni Benjamin Pimentel LAKBAY SINING readings on cultural development in the Philippines by Various Authors The Light Sang As It Left Your Eyes by Eileen R. Tabios Into the Country of Standing Men by Rey Ventura A Woman Pope, Neanderthals & Other Stories by Denis Murphy Salvaged Poems By Emman Lacaba U.G. An Underground Tale The Journey of Edgar Jopson and the First Quarter Storm Generation by Benjamin Pimentel MAY 2007 FEATURE The Bride Anthology by Patria Rivera 25 Chickens and a Pig for the Bride by Evangeline Canonizado Buell Not at the Table, Please! By Quirico S. Samonte, Jr. SCRATCH THE NEWS Filipino Americans In Our Midst by Cristina D.C. Pastor On the Presence of Filipinos in the United States by E. San Juan, Jr.