Growing Up Filipino: Stories for Young Adults by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

Growing Up Filipino: Stories for Young Adults Reviews

• 
  Paula

  Not only is my story the first one in this book but it was nominated for a National Book Award (Philippines 2004) for Young Adult Fiction.
  
  Don't let the title fool you. The stories are not really "stereotypically young adult" per se but the characters within are young adults and the stories are written from the POV of adults. Many of the stories are universal too! No need to be Filipino or Filipino American to appreciate it. :)
• 
  Onie Tadlas

  Read this one while at the National Book Store in the then newly-opened SM Marikina. I enjoyed reading the stories as they tell varied experiences of the Filipino youth from the past generations. My most favorite from this collection is Anthony L. Tan's "Sweet Grape, Sour Grape". :D
• 
  Mariel M. Pabroa

  This book is really filled with a lot of good writings and things to learn about growing up Filipino. I read about a lot of things that I somehow forgot now that I have passed my teenage years, and recalling those things really brings out the young Mariel in me. I have smiled, laughed, and wept, wept with the characters, as well as remembered my very own younger self as I navigate my teenage years. In fact, some of my favorites are: Lola Sim's Handkerchief, Voice in the Hills, Manny's Climb, Day of the Butterfly, San Prancisco, The Slumbering State, Her Wild American Self, The Last Moon-Game of Summer, and The Boundary. However, I do find, like any other collection of short stories that I read, that I really have a hard time going through each stories as these were written by different writers with different styles and ideals, which made me like a few stories, hated some, and felt lukewarm with the others. But that is not to say that the work is really that bad, it's just not fit for me and the kind of writing and storytelling that I usually read. Thus, I will rate this collection three stars.
• 
  Jennifer Riddle

  Good but not great.
• 
  Raine Villanueva

  Filipino authors collaborated in this anthology of short stories that focuses on young adults in many experiences. In some stories, Filipinos tells their different points of views about various themes that tackled in this collection, even if they are fictional or reality. They talk about how it is become a Filipino-American or living in the Philippines, especially in the busy city of Metro Manila to provincial getaways. They also tell you how young adults did in the past, or bringing up the present day ordeals. It also has cultural references on the country and a few current issues.
  
  If you like short stories plus learning about what it's gonna be if you are in the Philippines or being a Fil-Am, this is a must read. There's also a sequel (
  Growing Up Filipino II: More Stories for Young Adults) if you wanted to check out more of their works from returning and new writers.
• 
  Crystal

  It's a nice collection of stories. Most of them felt like they were written for adults though - possibly college age, but not teens so much. The cover art and even the introduction really seemed like a book written to be a college text. As with many short story collections, there were several that were amazing, but it was quite a mix. There was a glossary so even readers unfamiliar with Tagalog could look things up if necessary, but I found that most words were understandable through context anyway. I appreciated this look into Filipino culture.
• 
  Reno

  An anthology of stories by Filipino authors about the Filipino experience.
• 
  Liz

  At times this book was challenging but I did really enjoy it.