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I have had this feeling of being quiet and alone recently, since graduating from university, with the pressure of looking for a job as soon as I got my Transcript of Records and diploma, of starting a new chapter in life playing on my mind. I wasn’t able to breathe at one point, and I felt this sensation of struggle, nonetheless one laced with hope. What I did was push the pause button and recharge my body; I took a moment to think, a moment to find my rhythm, and to restore myself, both physically and mentally. I found escape in books, words, imaginings, and fuelled my curiosity. Reading has always been my comfort, an energy pill for my brain and for relaxation. I love the rapid breathing of immersing yourself in books, the feeling of being swept with ideas, characters, and themes. These range from food to sadness, from recollections of the past to erratic characters, the alien to the horrific, and these mundane thoughts underpinned my slow quiet days. There are days for memoir, poetry, and days for novels, and what you read sets up your mood. There are two major seasons in the Philippines, so I revel in my waning days for summer and for the rainy season.
These atmospheric books contain sadness, nostalgia, grief, shock, healing, and plenty to discover. To read gently is to be seen, but to be seen allows you to be hunted says Ocean Vuong of his debut novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. Even though these books have different topics, styles, themes, and genre, I found them so special, that each of these stories calls home. They have formed a substantial quietness and intensity that has sustained my slow quiet days. All ten books are short and can be read in a single day.
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Tiny Moons: A Year of Eating in Shanghai and Magnolia by Nina Mingya Powles
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Tiny Moons is an exquisite food memoir; its essays recounting trips to Wellington, Kota Kinabalu and Shanghai. Powles writes an engaging collection, exploring topics of belonging, cooking, eating, and homesickness. Magnolia, on the other hand, is a poetry collection that feels like a warm hug. It sparkles with wonders about movies, cities, food, Chinese characters, and the inhalation of beautiful experiences. A collection that is like the perfect meal to start your day.
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On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
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On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is told by a young Vietnamese American named Little Dog, in the form of a letter to his illiterate mother. It is an exploration of family, longing, masculinity, first love, and life. A gorgeous epistolary novel.
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Showers of Luck by Nadia Ayesha
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Inspired by the story of the author’s grandparents, Showers of Luck is a gentle historical gem. We follow Lily and Khalid through decades starting from pre-war colonial Singapore. Divided into three parts, the book covers a slow-burn romance and tackles along the way matters such as culture, food, loss, and family. The book is a celebration of courage and a paean to the passing of time.
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The Factory by Hiroko Oyamada
translated from the Japanese by David Boyd
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The Factory follows three workers at a massive factory in an unnamed Japanese city. These employees have different tasks: one shreds documents, another proofreads, and the third researches moss. The Factory takes a mundane situation and presents a vivid portrait that shows the emptiness of modern workstations.
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Earthlings by Sayaka Murata
translated from the Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori
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Earthlings is an illusory, out-of-this-world tale that is dark and playfully radical, and which sends chills running down your neck. The main protagonist, Natsuki, believes she’s an alien in this tale that unlocks a horror of confusion and innocence. Murata keeps the reader captivated with her startling humour.
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The Taste of Ginger by Mansi Shah
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“What does home truly mean?” asks this heartfelt debut of Mansi Shah, where choices and decisions collide. The Taste of Ginger is a letter to both the first-generation immigrant and the city of her birth.
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Heaven by Mieko Kawakami
translated from the Japanese by Sam Bett and David Boyd
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The arousal of emotions lingers in Mieko Kawakami’s Heaven. The book radiates ruminations and learnings as the characters navigate the bitter experience of bullying, which results in an unexpected friendship. The book deals with a sensitive topic very well, with the writing both warmth and allusive.
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Bibliolepsy by Gina Apostol
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Bibliolepsy is about the addiction and obsession that comes from reading and the craving of stories that fuel curiosities. This is also an intensely eccentric look at the rebellion that brought down a dictatorship in the Philippines. A reminder of the fleeting nature of love, sex, romantic connections, and essentially, books.
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A Map for the Missing by Belinda Huijuan Tang
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Going home to where your blood is beseeches questions about what you left behind, and about filling your responsibilities. A Map for the Missing centres on Yitian, who returns to his rural village in China after his mother tells him his father has gone missing. He reconnects with his first love, Hanwen, from whom he had separated by mutual choice. A lot of water has passed under the bridge and voices from the past call out to him. Yitian discovers that the word missing doesn’t just imply what is lost but what is there. This book is beautifully painful, and a glimpse of time, culture, and home.
How to cite: Bolo, Joefel. “Reading on Slow Quiet Days.” Cha: An Asian Literary Journal, 7 Dec. 2023, chajournal.blog/2023/12/07/slow-quiet-days.
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Joefel Bolo, whose work highlights queer longings, mental health, and rural spaces, is a queer writer living in the Philippines.