First Impression Friday will be a meme where you talk about a book that you JUST STARTED! Maybe you’re only a chapter or two in, maybe a little farther. Based on this sampling of your current read, give a few impressions and predict what you’ll think by the end.

Synopsis:

Portrait of a mixed race family grappling with identity and betrayal in a turbulent tropical island nation.

The House on Calle Sombra follows the fates and fortunes of the esteemed Castillo de Montijo family over three generations. Set in the Philippines – a tropical island nation where truth blends with fiction – none of the Castillos is quite as perceived. Successful patriarch Don Federico arrived from Spain a penniless orphan. Formidable matriarch Doña Fatimah is a native Muslim fugitive. And their brood of privileged descendants is struggling to live up to their famed and crested motto: FAMILY FIRST

Mirroring events in the country’s turbulent history, the Castillos’ perfect facade begins to fracture as shadows from their past return to claim their due.

Sardonic, witty, and brutally frank, The House on Calle Sobra is an ode to family, and a compelling exploration of how greed, love, and trauma are passed down through generations.

That is another work week in the books. Happy Friday everyone! I sure hope that everyone is ending the week on a high note. I had quite a very uneventful week at the office which has its own downsides. This, however, allowed me to pursue other things, such as writing. Anyway, I hope that the week went well for everyone. I hope that we are all diving into the weekend free of worries. If the week has gone awry, I hope that the weekend will provide you a reprieve. I hope you spend the weekend recuperating and pursuing the things that you love and are passionate about. I hope that the rest of the month and the year will be a great one for everyone. I hope that everyone will be showered with good news, blessings, and happiness. More importantly, I hope everyone will be healthy, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

For March, I originally planned to read works of Japanese literature. This is because I will be traveling to the Land of the Rising Sun later this month. In the end, I decided to read the works of female writers to commemorate Women’s History Month. Moreover, today is International Women’s Day! Happy International Women’s Day to all women out there! May you keep on slaying. It was also without design but I ended my February reading journey by reading four works by female writers in a row, including my first three translated works of the year. My foray into the works of female writers is kicking into high gear. I am currently reading Marga Ortigas’ The House on Calle Sombra.

When I first came across The House on Calle Sombra back in 2022, I was reluctant to read the book because it says that it is a parable; I have also never encountered Marga Ortigas before nor have I read any of her works. However, there was something about the cover that enchanted me; for some reason, it reminded me of Laura Esquivel’s Like Water for Chocolates. In the end, I relented to my impulse and obtained a copy of the book. Looking forward to the book and what it holds, I listed it as part of my 2024 Top 24 Reading List, making it the fourth book from the list that I read so far. It is also the second work by a Filipino writer this year. I certainly am starting early on these reading goals. Anyway, the novel is set in Manila and charts the fortunes of the Castillo de Montijo family.

The story of the Castillo de Montijo family started when the patriarch, Federico Julian, arrived in Manila in 1937. He was an orphan and was penniless when he fled Spain which was embroiled in a Civil War. However, as soon as he arrived in the Philippines, the Second World War started, prompting him to flee to the mountains. Federico Julian soon became a prisoner of war. But as if a twist of fate, it was during his incarceration that he met Fatimah, a Muslim woman, who helped nurse him back to health. The two fell in love and when the war ended, they married. In exchange for this, Fatimah left her faith.

To be honest, the story gets confusing because the novel follows different threads across different timelines. Reading the book entails settling in. At one point, you find yourself in the company of rebels, and at another, you find yourself in the future. As one can surmise, the time jumps also come with the introduction of new characters, and their connections are not always readily established. However, one can connect the dots. For instance, the opening chapter establishes that the family is affluent. They have a big house on Calle Sombra. One can then discern that the story chronicles how a man “without a pedigree or an inheritance” will work his up to the proverbial zenith of success; in the case of the story, owning a house on Intramuros, i.e. Calle Sombra. This rags-to-riches story is represented by the love story of the family’s patriarch and matriarch.

Meanwhile, in the contemporary, we meet the third generation of the Castillo de Montijos. They are more decadent, it seems. The middle thread, on the other hand, follows the story of Federico Julian and Fatimah’s five children. It is also of important note that the three generations are set in three important and tumultuous phases of Philippine history: the Japanese occupation and insurgency, the Martial Law period, and the more contemporary war on drugs. It does not take much of a genius to figure out what Ortigas is posturing on. After all, she is also a journalist, hence, the brevity of some chapters which created a faster reading pace.

I have finished just under a hundred pages of the book which means there is still a lot to look forward to. So far, it has been engaging and some of the characters are growing up on me. I am looking forward to how Ortigas will tie all of the book’s elements together. How about you fellow reader? What book or books are you going to take with you this weekend? I hope you get to enjoy whatever you are reading right now. Happy weekend!