The April 15 interview with Gina Apostol, author of “Insurrecto”, went well. Our venue was the Toronto Public Library and I was kindly invited by the library, flown in and put up for the night at the Manulife center.
Pablo Picasso said “Art is a lie which makes us realize the truth”. “Insurrecto” is a brilliant piece of metaphysical fiction that reminded me of how I felt when I read “The Garden of Forking Paths” by Borges and “Slaughterhouse 5” by Vonnegut. In other words, I felt stimulated, bewildered, disturbed, elated and alive, all at the same time. It is a book about powerful ideas which at first seem new, but upon further introspection, are actually deep in our psyche if we only have the curiosity to allow them to come out.
Gina Apostol was gracious, thoughtful, generous and funny – just like her book. She is a Filipino-American writer now living in New York and has previously won the Philippine National Book award twice. “Insurrecto” is about event that take place in Samar in 1901 during the Philippine-American War as well as Manila in the present. It is a worthy read and I’m so glad I read the book and met its creator.
