Suplado Tips by Stanley Chi. This is book that, perhaps, really started our reading trip this year. It’s not high-end literary reading but it’s funny, it’s witty, and it’s hella entertaining. Stanley’s book is too tips-full of wisecracks and wisdom on life. Reckon it’s a self-help, if self-help books had a bit of Stanley’s humor. It’s such a hit that hey, he even got himself some suplado merchandise.
Related:
Click here to read FHM's review of Suplado Tips
Any of the three books Lourd De Veyra released this year. Between 2011 and Lourd alone are three books. That’s probably more than what a lot of us can read in a year! So take your pick: There’s a book of poems (Insectissimo), there’s a book of essays (The Best of This is Not a Crazy Planets), and then finally, Lourd’s first novel (Super Panalo Sounds!). We’ve read all three and we promise, all of them promise a super panalo time, as only Lourd can provide.
Related:
Click here to read FHM's review of The Best of This is Not A Crazy Planets
Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. Three weeks after Apple’s head honcho Steve Jobs passed away—rest in peace, sir— his authorized biography hit the stands. And what a hit it was; Apple fans wanted to know more about the man responsible for changing their lives (hear them roar: I love my iPhone!!!) while the rest of the world wanted to know what the hoopla surrounding this man was all about. A waitlist ensued, and when it finally arrived, oh boy was the book everywhere. For this 571-pager, author Walter Isaacson conducted over 40 interviews with the man in the course of over two years to try and unravel the genius of Jobs. Was it successful in doing so? Not as much as it was in showing that Jobs, too, is just like you and me. We still don’t know how his mind worked, just that it worked and it worked superbly.
Related:
Click here to read RIP Steve Jobs
Click here to read 10 Steve Jobs Quotes to Live By
Click here to read Steve Jobs: The Ways he Changed the World
Just Kids by Patti Smith. One part tear-jerker, one part rock n’ roll history, and 100% inspirational, Just Kids showcases how rock royalty Patti Smith became one of rock n’ roll’s most revered personalities. From extreme poverty (imagine: a day-old doughnut is considered a treat) she slowly made her way to the top tier of New York City’s crème de la crème. Apart from the intimate look on her relationships with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, we especially liked the insider’s look on the almost-mythical NYC rock n’ roll scene (watch for her super solid encounter with Jimi Hendrix!) and the language by which she tells her stories; we didn’t know text could be melodic! In the beginning of the book, she relates her promise to make something of herself. By the end of the book, you know she achieved that, and probably even more.
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. For a few years now, the English-reading world patiently waited for the English version of Murakami’s book. The wait was well worth it. This is what the book is about: It’s 1984 and a girl finds herself stuck in traffic. She cannot be late. So she takes an unusual exit and finds herself in the same world, but not quite. To begin with, she started seeing two moons in the night sky. All sorts of things begin to happen, all of which will engage the reader, pull you close, and next thing you know, you’ve given up your life just to read the epic book. It is epic, too: over 900 pages of strange goings-on, erotic episodes, and unusual reasoning that will have you think, sabog tong Murakami na to. The end isn’t as wonderful as the beginning but just the same, a must-read.
