{"id":15706,"date":"2022-12-03T06:42:32","date_gmt":"2022-12-03T16:42:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/?p=15706"},"modified":"2022-12-03T06:42:34","modified_gmt":"2022-12-03T16:42:34","slug":"book-review-marikit-and-the-ocean-of-stars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/2022\/12\/03\/book-review-marikit-and-the-ocean-of-stars\/","title":{"rendered":"BOOK REVIEW: Marikit And The Ocean Of Stars"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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by Renelaine Bontol Pfister

<\/em>Marikit Lakandula is a girl from Barrio Magiting who wants what any normal ten-year-old girl wants: nice things.

Clothes that aren\u2019t old and yellowed and mended. A nice dress and good food on her birthday, similar to a friend\u2019s. Marikit envisions wearing a blue ball gown worthy of a fairy, or diwata<\/em>. But she is the daughter of a poor seamstress, and her father and brother were lost at sea.

Marikit shares the same birthday as her mother, Aling Anita, who has always sewn clothes for Marikit that she is ashamed of wearing. But she hopes her mother would sew her a beautiful dress for once. Aling Anita tirelessly sits at her makinang de padyak<\/em>, working day and night to provide for Marikit.On her birthday, Marikit is excited to see what her mother has made her. But instead of a fairy-like gown, she gets a dress patched together using scraps. Marikit gets angry as her little hope for happiness is dashed.

But she has no time to indulge in her tantrum. Suddenly, her world upturns and another she didn\u2019t know before opens. A Shadow comes for her, and she discovers her humble mother is really a diwanlaon<\/em>: a former diwata<\/em>, and Marikit is a Halfling. Aling Anita comes from the Manghahabi branch of diwata\u2014\u201cweavers of moon-silk and sunrays, forging the armors of kings and gods.\u201d (page 72)

With this discovery, Marikit is thrust into the Land of Engkantos, where she must embark on a diwata journey and search for \u201cX\u201d, armed with only her patchwork dress as a map to the magical land.

Marikit meets new friends and encounters many enemies in the Land of Engkantos. We come across familiar characters of Filipino folklore: Aswang<\/em>, Tikbalang<\/em>, even Juan Tamad<\/em>, who are given fresh angles and concepts by the author.

A cast of compelling characters abound, such as the small but stouthearted firefly Alitaptap (who goes by Ali), a wealthy but trapped girl named Saturnina, and of course, a powerful Bathala.

This is Caris Avenda\u00f1o Cruz\u2019s first book. \u201cMarikit and the Ocean of Stars\u201d was published by FSG Books for Young Readers and released on October 18 this year.

Cruz, like her seamstress character, is a weaver: she weaves an intricate, imaginative, and delightful story of adventure and self-discovery. Family and friendship are strong elements.

For example, the author contrasts brother and sister Apolaki (the Sun) and Mayari (the Moon) to Marikit and her brother. While Apolaki and Mayari bitterly fight, all Marikit wants is to play sungka<\/em> with her Kuya Emman again.

Meanwhile, through characters like the diwata, Principalias and Quarts, Cruz comments on social classes and identity.

The setting evokes memories of us Filipinos who grew up in the Philippines: believing in supernatural beings (for a longer time than we\u2019d like to admit), listening to the sound of a sewing machine as someone in the household mends clothes (in my home it was our beloved yaya<\/em>, Ate Flor), and playing sungka<\/em> with our siblings.

\u201cI wanted a story that will take readers home, to our part of the Philippines. The province of Bulacan was a lovely mix of old and new,\u201d says Cruz.

\u201cI was lucky to grow up surrounded by rice fields glistening under the sun, the sound of the sorbetes<\/em> peddlers in their bikes, the charming rural vistas reflected on the wide fish farms, and the sun-soaked streets, with familiar faces walking by.\u201d

The main characters in the book are inspired by the two women closest to her: her mother and grandmother. Cruz says, \u201cThe name \u201cMarikit\u201d sounded like the Tagalog word for small, \u201cmaliit,\u201d because my mother was the smallest among her siblings, and they often (lovingly) teased her for it.\u201d

Cruz says she used to be a shy person who expressed herself by writing in a notebook, but when she got involved in her church and in children\u2019s ministry, she realized she loved creating and telling stories to children; like it was something she was meant to do.

Her favorite literary character is Jo March, from her favorite book, Louisa May Alcott\u2019s \u201cLittle Women.\u201d

\u201cI always wished for a \u201cJo Moment,\u201d the time when I could be proud of my writing. I want to think I somehow got that with Marikit!\u201d she says.Each chapter title in the book features a Filipino word, such as \u201cMarikit,\u201d \u201cnanay,\u201d \u201cdapithapon\u201d and \u201cbato,\u201d defined in the regular way and extrapolated to apply to Marikit\u2019s story.

One example is: \u201cSinulid. <\/em>Filipino. n. Thread. <\/em>A long strand of fiber used to weave, stitch, knot, or knit. Occasionally employed to make magical wings.\u201dTagalog words are used throughout the book, with a glossary to guide non-Tagalog speakers. \u201cI hope Marikit sparks the readers\u2019 interest in learning more about us Filipinos, our culture, and our beautiful folklore,\u201d the author says.

It is an impressive debut, distinctly and proudly Filipino. But the theme is universal.

At the core, it\u2019s about a young girl discovering what really matters and realizing her potential; that powers and magic are something, but not everything.

In order to reach X and fulfill your destiny, one must have heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marikit and the Ocean of Stars <\/strong>by Caris Avenda\u00f1o Cruz is available to purchase on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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