GIRL FROM MAGUINDA

From the Philippines south, Filipino writer Aurelio Pena brings us his special collection of short stories that unravel the heart and soul of this exotic country : Full Moon Over Mt Diwata – a man’s search for gold and hopes for a better future ends in a mining disaster; Girl From Maguinda – a girl suddenly disappear from a small city in Mindanao and ends up as a bar girl in Manila’s red light district, dreaming of a better life; Imagine – a young man from the South tries to conquer his loneliness in the capital city of Manila by playing with his imagination when commuting by train to work, until he actually meets someone; Platonic – a young man struggles with his platonic relationship with his three girlfriends, fighting his own emotions and sexual awakening, just to keep them as friends; House on Malvar Street – a young man’s memories of his childhood at his old house on Malvar street all come back to him after meeting a massage attendant who resembles a next door girl he once knew in the same neighborhood where he grew up as a boy; Apartment For Rent – a man struggling to overcome the pain of separation from his wife and family finds solace in helping his niece find an apartment