Guide to the history behind Sugar Sun

At the start of Under the Sugar Sun, Georgina Potter travels to the Philippines to search for her brother, Ben—a soldier missing since the Philippine-American War. The very night she arrives, she walks into a fire set by the cholera police to “cleanse” a neighborhood. Right away we are rooted into the history of the American colonial period.

But why were Americans in the Philippines in the first place? How did war with Spain turn into an empire in Asia?

Here on my blog, I have written a lot of history—no surprise since it is my day job. Here are links to the most relevant posts, complete with illustrations.

What was so “new” about American imperialism in the Philippines? Also, how Mark Twain is still relevant today. Find out more.
American imperialism was a cause and effect of the Spanish-American War. Why fight at all? It’s the economy, stupid! Find out more.
Navy accidents, fake news, and a New Yorker bent on war. Of course, I mean the Spanish-American War of 1898. Find out more.
Mission creep was a thing before we had the phrase. How the war with Spain turned into an empire in Asia. Well, sorta. Find out more.
The good, bad, and ugly of your great-great-great grandparents’ Vietnam War. And why it matters to you now. Find out more.
Cholera has long been a casualty of war. To Americans it was challenge to modernity & “benevolent assimilation.” Find out more.
Learn about the real missionaries of Dumaguete, the backdrop for Tempting Hymn, and their best legacy: Silliman University. Find out more.
A case study in occupation, and a town that every American should know. Essential reading for the upcoming Sugar Moon. Find out more.

I hope you have enjoyed my particular snarky view of history, and I hope it enriches your reading of the Sugar Sun series:

Serious history. Serious sex. Happily ever after.