R. Zamora Linmark

OK
About R. Zamora Linmark
Poet, novelist, and playwright R. Zamora Linmark was born in Manila, Philippines, and raised and educated in Honolulu, Hawaii. The recipient of a U.S.-Japan Friendship Commission and NEA fellowships and twice from the Fulbright Foundation, he has taught, as a Distinguished Visiting Professor in Creative Writing in universities in the United States and the Philippines. He is the author of four poetry collections, most recently Pop Verite, all from Hanging Loose Press. He also published the novels Leche (Coffee House Press) and Rolling the R's (Kaya Press), which he'd adapted for the stage. His latest novel is The Importance of Being Wilde at Heart, his first book for young adults, from Delacorte/Random House. He currently resides in Baguio City, Philippines, and Honolulu, Hawaii.
Customers Also Bought Items By
Are you an author?
Author Updates
Titles By R. Zamora Linmark
Words have always been more than enough for Ken Z, but when he meets Ran at the mall food court, everything changes. Beautiful, mysterious Ran opens the door to a number of firsts for Ken: first kiss, first love. But as quickly as he enters Ken's life, Ran disappears, and Ken Z is left wondering: Why love at all, if this is where it leads?
Letting it end there would be tragic. So, with the help of his best friends, the comfort of his haikus and lists, and even strange, surreal appearances by his hero, Oscar Wilde, Ken will find that love is worth more than the price of heartbreak.
"An unabashed love letter to Oscar Wilde, Cole Porter, and the arts' ability to give voice to human emotion." --Kirkus
"Linmark's novel is definitely offbeat and wild(e)ly imaginative...and a rich reading experience that would make the ineffable Oscar proud." --Booklist
"A big-hearted book that...always keeps love in its heart." --Abdi Nazemian author of Like a Love Story and The Authentics
"As surreal as it is real, as beautiful as it is painful, as playful as it is wise. --Randy Ribay, author of Patron Saints of Nothing
After thirteen years of living in the United States, Vince returns to his birthplace, the Philippines. In the heat and chaos of the city, he encounters a motley cast of characters, including a renegade nun, a political film director, arrogant hustlers, and the country’s spotlight-driven First Daughter. Haunted by his childhood memories and a troubled family history, Vince unravels the turmoil, beauty, and despair of a life caught between a fractured past and a precarious future.
Witty and mesmerizing, this novel explores the complex colonial and cultural history of the Philippines and the paradoxes inherent in the search for both personal and national identities. “Interspersed are ‘Tourist Tips’ for Manila, as well as postcards with photos that Vince writes to his friends back home. In short, Leche is all we’ve anticipated from Linmark” (Honolulu Weekly), “as quirky and funny as its oddball characters” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).
Notable literary figures pay tribute to poet/writer Justin Chin with personal commentaries on works selected from his seven books.
Justin Chin's fearless and fierce voice was resolute in relating his worldview, whether directly or through metaphorical language. As a queer Asian American, born and raised in Southeast Asia within a devoutly Christian, ethnically Chinese family of medical professionals, Chin's early life experience informed his writing and framed his point of view. In his literary works, the seemingly conflicted duality of existence is paramount: sacred and profane, saints and sinners, health and illness, hope and despair, life and death. His works also explore his experience of living with HIV, which progressed into AIDS in his final years.
This unique collection of Chin's literary legacy will serve as both a primer for those new to his works, as well as a loving tribute by those writers who knew him and his work best.
Among many others, contributing writers include R. Zamora Linmark (Rolling the R's), Michelle Tea (How To Grow Up), Timothy Liu (Don't Go Back To Sleep), and Lois-Ann Yamanaka (Night at the Pahala Theatre).
Justin Chin (19692015) was the award-winning author of four poetry books, two essay collections, one book each of short fiction, and text-based performance art works. His writing appeared in literary magazines, including Beloit Poetry Journal, and anthologies, including American Poetry: The Next Generation (Carnegie Mellon). He taught at UC Santa Cruz and at San Francisco State University. He was a recipient of fellowships and grants from the California Arts Council, Djerassi Foundation, Franklin Furnace Fund, PEN American Center, and PEN Center USA West, among others.