The Descartes Highlands

(Paperback)

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Description

Two men, each unaware of the other, share a secret: they were sold for adoption by their American father after birth in the Philippines. In The Descartes Highlands, three alternating stories interweave the experiences of Andrew Breszky and the two sons who try to connect and piece together the puzzle of their reckless, impulsive father. Both will discover that their relationships echo that of the man whose history eludes them. Celebrated Filipino writer Eric Gamalinda's international debut is a contemporary work combining mystery, film noir and philosophy.

Reviews

Gamalinda's characters are both struck by the curse and graced by the blessing of their cosmopolitan condition. The story wraps together distant places, seemingly different from one another but all contaminated by the same evil: human solitude and our inability to engage in love and genuine relationships. Gamalinda would not say it out loud, but it seems there is hope for this world after all.
--Diego Marani, author of New Finnish Grammar and The Last of the Vostyachs

Like Walt Whitman, Gamalinda contains multitudes--but with a better sense of humor.
--Barry Schwabsky, art critic of The Nation

Eric Gamalinda's attention and spirit are vibrant.
--Michael Burkard, Guggenheim Fellow and Whiting Award winner

Author Bio

Eric Gamalinda has previously published, in the Philippines, a collection of short stories, three poetry collections, and four novels, including My Sad Republic, winner of the Philippine Centennial Prize in 1998. Born and raised in Manila, where he worked as a journalist covering everything from politics to rock music, Gamalinda currently lives in New York City and teaches at the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at Columbia University. The Descartes Highlands is his latest novel.