It begins with a body. On a clear day in winter, the battered corpse of Crispin Salvador is pulled from the Hudson River taken from the world is the controversial lion of Philippine literature. Missing, too, is the only manuscript of his final book meant to rescue him from obscurity by exposing the corrupt roots of power behind the Filipino ruling families. His student, Miguel, investigates, journeying home from a city still in shock from terrorist attacks to a country caught between reckless decay and desperate progress. To understand his mentor's death, Miguel scours the life, charting Salvador's trajectory via his poetry, stories, interviews, novels, and memoirs. The literary fragments become patterns become stories become epic: a generations-long saga of revolution, familial duty, political intrigue, and a people's enduring struggle against their own worst tendencies. This is a clever, bravura, and exuberant debut novel from a new literary sensation. 'Brilliantly conceived, and stylishly executed, [Ilustrado] covers a large and tumultuous historical period with seemingly effortless skill. It is also ceaselessly entertaining, frequently raunchy, and effervescent with humour' Judges of the Man Asian Literary Prize. This 2010 Farrar, Straus & Giroux Hardback is in good condition. ISBN: 9780330510004 SKU: 1482849 Note: Any image shown is from a stock photo and is not the actual book.
