Books: Max, Frankie, Doris

Just recently, Ambassador Preciosa Soliven and her daughter Sara gifted me with the book Maximo V. Soliven, Ave Triumphator! A Collection of Timeless Poems. It may come as a surprise to many that Max wrote beautiful, lyrical poems.

He is best known as a journalist, and his statue on Roxas Boulevard is an indication of his prestige and stature as such.

Towards the end of the coffeetable book, tributes to Max are reprinted, and I am herewith quoting mine: “His kilometric columns — solid and substantial — evinced a fantastic grasp of world affairs, past and present, and a thorough conversance with European, American and Oriental history. His readers were politicians, government officials, diplomats, academicians, students of history and political science, businessmen, and virtually every literate person. As a columnist, he wielded tremendous influence. Ranking government officials and diplomats courted his favor.”

I recall an incident which demonstrates this influence. An ambassador once made a remark that grievously offended Max. Forthwith, Max wrote three successive (and as usual kilometric!) columns mercilessly attacking the diplomat who, shortly thereafter, left the country.

Max’s parents, Congressman Benito T. Soliven and Pelagia J. Villaflor emerge — and deservedly — as heroes in the book. A brilliant congressman, Mr. Soliven died soon after the Death March, leaving behind Pelagia to raise and support nine children, and to send them to school. She did all these singlehandedly.

Max’s nationalistic contributions to the country will forever be enshrined in our hearts. He is buried in the Libingan ng mga Bayani where he belongs — a legend for all time.

The prolific Francisco (“Frankie”) Sionil Jose has come out with another novel, The Samsons, which follow short stories, novellas, other novels, verse and nonfiction.

Known as “a leading literary voice of Asia and the Pacific”, and considered by many, according to the Singapore Straits Times, as “the most likely candidate for the Nobel Prize for Literature”, Frankie is the most widely-read Filipino writer abroad. His works have been translated into several languages including Russian, and are read in 15 countries.

Herewith are comments from international critics. Ian Buruma, NY Review of Books: “The foremost Filipino novelist in English, his novels deserve wider readership than the Philippines can offer. His major work, the Rosales Saga, can be read as an allegory for the Filipino in search of an identity.”

Joseph Coates, Chicago Tribune: “Tolstoy himself would envy the author of this scorching work which whets our appetite for his masterpiece, the five-novel Rosales saga.”

Kulinarya was launched at the Pen ballroom by the Asia Society chaired by Doris M. Ho. A brainchild of Doris, the valuable book aims to help Filipino cuisine gain recognition both here and abroad, just as Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Indonesian, Thai, Indian cuisines have long gained their own identities.

Chefs and/or food writers Glenda Barretto, Claude Tayag, Gaita Fores, Conrado Calalang, Jessie Sincioco, Myrna Segismundo and Michaela Fenix “took the challenge of identifying the best practices in the preparation and presentation of traditional recipes.”

Consciously or not, they are drawing from the culinary legacy of Maria Y. Orosa, pioneer food chemist and technologist who, with pharmaceutical, BS and MS degrees earned from Seattle U. in 1919, was appointed state chemist of Washington, a post she gave up to serve her country.

She concocted some 700 recipes which she kitchen-tested herself, and many of these recipes have strayed into several cookbooks. She introduced canning and food preservation, produced wine from native fruits, and way before Del Monte made vinegar from pineapple, Maria had already done it prior to World War II. There is no space here for her countless culinary innovations and food inventions.