I'm back!

I've been gone for some time but I'm back! Harhar!

So some updates in my life. First, I submitted a resignation letter to my boss and left the office I was working in. Reason? My dad wanted to set-up a business with moi as the business manager. Hmmm. Not bad. So I said "I'm in!" Well, the job was great but you can't blame me. It's a bigger opportunity and the only way to get to it is to get off the regular work and help my dad with the business building.

Then, last Saturday (July 16, 2011), a Comic Convention was held in our small city. It was actually the first comic convention and it was small. It was successful despite the small number of attendees. But I had fun anyways. Really loved that day! The organizer promised another comic convention on February and he hopes more comic artists (indie and well-known professionals) and comic fans will participate. I'm crossing my fingers here. Our city has very conservative and tradition-bound residents and comics is a small part of their lives. That's why thank God for a thoughtful resident comic artist who set up a small comic convention. Comic awareness successful!

Now to the novels. Because I was busy, I was successful reading only one novel last month. Praise Natsuo Kirino's GROTESQUE. What I can say about it is...honestly? It gave me the creeps. It wasn't a thriller or a horror story, but it scared me. To think that it actually tells the story of Japanese women, from childhood to adulthood. I admit I was so irritated with the narrator - I forgot that her name was never mentioned in the book - at first. She was rude and selfish. Then I got irritated with her sister, her accused killer, then the rapist's sister and rapist's so-called second victim. But when I got to the end, I started feeling sorry for all of them. Miss Natsuo Kirino really got me there. It just gave me the creeps that the story has some truth in it. That many women, Japanese or not, can actually turn to monsters (a term repeatedly mentioned in the book). The ending was the shocking part. That was really not expected. It was definitely a GROTESQUE book.

I loved OUT, Natsuo Kirino's first book (in English, too). It was the first Kirino book I have read and it was the culprit that made me rush to bookstores and thriftshops to look for a Natsuo Kirino book. I found out that her books are rare finds here in the Philippines and I was lucky to find one hardbound in a local bookshop. It was a little expensive but I'd give a thousand pesos to complete my Natsuo Kirino collection. Within two months, I was able to get a copy each of OUT and GROTESQUE. I hit the stores for the third English-translated book, REAL WORLD, but no luck. I'm still searching, though. I'd order abroad if I have to...some time, I guess. Until I can pay for the shipping and customs costs.

That's it for now. I'm starting on another novel. I'm a thriller and fantasy fan so I'm getting my hands on one of my Dean Koontz collection.