The Thirdest World: Stories and Essays by Three Filipino Writers

Fiction. Literary Nonfiction. Asian American Studies. THE THIRDEST WORLD includes the work of Gina Apostol, Eric Gamalinda, and Lara Stapleton, winners of the Philippine National Book Award, the Philippine Centennial Literary Prize, and the Pen Open book award, respectively. The three writers, from three greatly varied perspectives, take a look at the histories of struggle, travel and loss inherent to the colonial experience. Two works of fiction are included by each author, along with an essay that discusses the relationship between identity and narrative in each writer's work. All three writers see a profound relationship between postmodern structures and the disjointed history of a twice-colonized country: the Philippines changed hands from Spain to the United States in 1898. Passionate, intricate, witty, subtle, wise and wildly fresh and new, THE THIRDEST WORLD will give readers fascinating trips over the Pacific and into novel worlds of creativity.

"These stories chart the strained divide between loyalty and identity: the tough blossoms that flower in the shadow of the American tree. THE THIRDEST WORLD is an important book, not only for its prescient chronicling of postcolonial Filipinos, but also for its hic et nunc observations of Filipino identities. Apostol, Gamalinda, and Stapleton are three writers who deserve an international audience."
—Sabina Murray

These stories chart the strained divide between loyalty and identity: the tough blossoms that flower in the shadow of the American tree. The Thirdest World is an important book, not only for its prescient chronicling of postcolonial Filipinos, but also for its hic et nunc observations of Filipino identities. Apostol, Gamalinda, and Stapleton are three writers who deserve an international audience. --Sabina Murray