Bohol and Beyond

Abstract

This collection of short stories explores the lives of people on and from the island province, Bohol--in the central Philippines, the region known as the Visayas--from which there is a troubling dearth of texts. The use of the writer's native language, interwoven into the English narrative is a common technique of postcolonial writers; it is her way of asserting to the world the continuing presence of the Visayan culture and language despite centuries of colonization. The collection portrays not only the people of Bohol, but also Filipino Americans in Hawaiʻi, and women of the Filipino diaspora in the United States. A lengthy introduction examines how the stories are infused and shaped by colonialism, diaspora and feminism; it sets the context for writing as a member of an underrepresented group.