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Tabios, a multi-award winning poetess has written, edited and co-edited nine books of poetry, fiction and essays in the U.S. and the Philippines. According to Marsh Hawk Press Reproductions is the first comprehensive introduction of her works to American readers.
Reproductions is a collection of prose poetry whose relevance applies to not only poetry and creative writing studies, but also to Asian American literature, Filipino literature, postcolonialism, decolonialism, history, multicultural studies. Other reviews have not missed her wit and political incisiveness, her refreshing and cutting syntax, and her unique manipulation of narrative and abstraction into paradox.
Her poetry exudes unabashed sensuality, artistry, intelligence, and lends itself to a reader's surprise at their own insight. In Tabios, I have discovered a poetess whose works are a cultural activist's. Tabios is indeed an activist whose medium is her poetry. For the Little Brown Brother to re-write his colonizer's language into unexpected structure and exacting, stimulating prose that comes out as poetry excellence --- it is an act of activism in itself.
Eileen and I corresponded recently about her work. I want to give you a feeling of what reading her work and relating with her is like.
Email Exchanges:
In a message dated 1/8/2004
5:20:40 AM Pacific Standard Time,
perladaly@newfilipina.com writes:
Dear Eileen:
I was going through my old files and found my review notes on Empty Flagpole. I gave you the shortest version that last time. I wanted to share them with you because you did ask for them and I never got to it. see below.
I need to reread "empty flagpole" more often. doing so inspires me to write... something... you are a delight to read, Eileen!
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sept 2002 notes on Review for "empty flagpole"
I have grown since 4 years ago when I last read Eileen Tabios. I have done a good amount of so called inner work and coming to terms with what I believe I am meant to do with my self. So now when I read Empty Flagpole, I see more in her poetry then I did when I first read Beyond Life Sentences.
The seeing though is less about eyesight and more about in sight. In her poetry of abstractions Eileen lends to us exercises of inner sight. Her prose poetry ample with abstract and disjointed thoughts that evoke smells, sensations, memories. The poetry is a play on our feelings from moment to moment, abstraction to abstraction and they should not be ignored. If you become aware of your feelings you are taking steps into understanding your soul as feelings are the soul's language being spoken in our bodies. Listen.
They are also exercises in learning to be present in the moment. Every moment of our lives, our five senses and our inner feelings are working together, we are connecting our physical world with our metaphysical. How do we learn to be attune to this? We become aware. The poems are exercises in awareness of the moment·.
"I soothed my sore hands on icy walls of beer"
There is intelligence and talent of Filipina-American poetess Eileen Tabios. The truly amazing thing is what I have learned from her work.
Her work symbolizes for me what the Filipino can do with his mongrel heritage --- mongrel culture, mongrel dialects of native tongue-spanish-english, mongrel bloodlines. Our heritage, our final selves descended from multiple racial lines, a collage of culture and language·
If the question is: what will we tool ourselves into?
Can these be answers: Subvert the inferiority of it all and create something totally new... Embrace it· Exult the mongrel-being?
Shrug off inferiority that everyone, history, white man, class struggle wants us to believe in?
Become like new from both the old and new?
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From: ERTABIOS@aol.com
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 2004 11:22:22 EST
Subject: Re: happy new year
To: perladaly@newfilipina.com
PERLA PERLA PERLA!!!!
This is the kind of response I look for -- not so much for the praise, welcome though it is -- but for knowing I made a difference somehow beyond just the selfish rewards of writing's pleasures!
Thank you!
I hope you don't mind if I share with friends,
Eileen
For an extended recommendation and for information on how you can purchase a copy direct from Filipino bookstores click here.
(BagongPinay Book of the Month, October 2002)
 You can also purchase this book from Amazon.com.
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