Lakas and the Manilatown Fish / Si Lakas at ang Isdang Manilatown
Written by Anthony D. Robles
Illustrated by Carl Angel
Bilingual English and Tagalog
ISBN 0-89239-182-0
$16.95
Children's Book Press

Can a fish talk? Can it jump and play and run, especially run, just like a small boy? When Lakas and his dad go shopping, they meet a very special fish that can do all these things and more! But this fish won't stay put in his fish tank. Once it leaps out, a cast of unusual Manilatown characters chases it down Kearny Street and all the way to San Francisco Bay. Hoy, hoy! Will Lakas and his friends ever catch this sly and charming fish? Will Lakas' dearest wish come true?

In this bilingual English-Tagalog story set in the U.S., an all-American boy of Filipino descent, some amusing manongs-Filipino elders-and a fish with unusual faculties take off on a fanciful romp through a dreamscape of the imagination. Author Anthony Robles' irrepressibly lively characters and improbably funny adventure will delight readers. Artist Carl Angel's evocative illustrations leap off the page and pay affectionate homage to one neighborhood's Filipino-American past.

OOV Bookshelf 2003

DECEMBER 2003 FEATURE Towards a Cultural Community: Identity, Education and Stewardship in Filipino American Performing Arts by Remé Grefalda, Lucy Burns, Anna Alves and Theodore Gonzalves Understanding Mindanao Conflict by Patricio P. Diaz Not Home, But Here: Writing from the Filipino Diaspora edited by Luisa Igloria The Right Place and Other Stories by Rodney Dakita Garcia Escape to Manila: From Nazi Tyranny to Japanese Terror by Frank Ephraim A Watch in the Night by Denis Murphy Lakas and the Manilatown Fish by Anthony D. Robles Gravities of Center by Barbara J. Pulmano Reyes TRI/VIA by Michelle Naka Pierce and Veronica Corpuz JULY 2003 FEATURE Ang Balabal ng Diyos / Ang Silid ng Makasalanan by Rosario de Guzman Lingat Love Gathers All by Singaporean and Filipino writers APRIL 2003 FEATURE Not My Bowl of Rice by E.R. Escobar Growing Up Filipino: Stories for Young Adults edited by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard JANUARY 2003 FEATURE The Stranded Whale by Linda Ty-Casper Monster by Joel Tan