Dream Stories

by Merlinda Bobis

"Tell us a story about wounds." The young girl's mother, now quite calm, stems the flow of blood, while I probe for the bullet.
"A story about tears." The weeping boy has cupped his tears and drunk them...
"About going away."
"About the forest."
"About the moon before it rises."

A village holding back the rising of the moon. A white turtle ferrying dreams of the dead. A queue of longings in Sydney. A river sweet with lemon grass. A working siesta in a five-star hotel. An anomalous kiss in Iraya. Or the secret of the tightening shoes. These are among the twenty-three dream stories that Merlinda Bobis conjures between the Philippines and Australia. The mythic weave with the wistful, the quirky with the visionary, and always in a storytelling voice that sings.

Genres: Short Stories

141 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Merlinda Bobis is an award-winning contemporary Philippine-Australian writer who has had 4 novels, 6 poetry books and a collection of short stories published, and 10 dramatic works performed. For her, ‘Writing visits like grace. Its greatest gift is the comfort if not the joy of transformation. In an inspired moment, we almost believe that anguish can be made bearable and injustice can be overturned, because they can be named. And if we’re lucky, joy can even be multiplied a hundredfold, so we may have reserves in the cupboard for the lean times.’

Born in Tabaco in the Philippines province of Albay, Merlinda Bobis attended Bicol University High School then completed her B.A. at Aquinas University in Legazpi City. She holds post-graduate degrees from the University of Santo Tomas and University of Wollongong where she taught Creative Writing for 21 years. She now lives and writes on Ngunnawal land (Canberra, Australia).

Her literary awards include the 2016 Christina Stead Prize for Fiction NSW Premier's Literary Award for her novel 'Locust Girl. A Lovesong'; three Philippine National Books Awards (2016: 'Locust Girl', 2014: 'Fish-Hair Woman', 2000: 'White Turtle'); 2013 MUBA: 'Fish-Hair Woman'; 2000 Steele Rudd Award for the Best Published Collection of Australian Short Stories: 'White Turtle'; 2006 Philippine National Balagtas Award for her poetry and prose (in English, Filipino and Bikol); 1998 Prix Italia, 1998 Australian Writers' Guild Award and 1995 Ian Reed Radio Drama Prize for her play 'Rita's Lullaby'; three Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards in Literature Poetry Category (2016: Second prize, 1989: Second, 1987: First). Her poetry collection, 'Accidents of Composition' was Highly Commended for the 2018 ACT Book of the Year.

Reviews

[chynna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most stories cross the lines of fantasy and reality, really just like reading a journal with entries from a dream-like state. Her writing style was very aptly suited for this genre. Her intersections with moving abroad and crossing cultural boundaries remind me of some themes of Mia Alvar’s work, with a bit of Nikki Alfar’s touch of fantasy.

Favorites: White Turtle, Fruit Stall (my first read back in creative writing class in undergrad), Fish-Hair Woman, The Sadness Collector, The Kissing, Splinter, Border Lover, and Before The Moon Rises.

[Eugene · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a strange and unfamiliar territory for me, as i probed into the book, i find it a little exhausting going through the different short stories. I did admire the writer's enthusiasm on depicting some Filipino cultures, slangs, and food throughout the book, but i find it bizarre and unrealistic and it did not really contribute to the outcome of each story. It was sometimes funny and transient-like so to speak, and just like a dream that i could not even remember after reading. maybe i am not in the right mood still for something like this, and i find short stories to be pretty challenging in terms of gradually keeping the reader on edge , just like in a novel. I think i should read more short stories in the future, to be able to appreciated some of the complexities that an author would like to showcase in just a little span of time of reading.

[Jaymee]

I did not know that this is just a reprint of White Turtle (Spinifex and De La Salle University Press) AND The Kissing (aunt lute). One would think that the current publisher would have included that information at the back of the book, so it wouldn't seem like a new collection. I like this writer's style but it gets a bit frustrating when she keeps repeating herself and stretching out her stories by publishing small books (i.e. A Novel in Waiting as a prelude to Fish Hair Woman. This also preempts the book itself, raising your expectations). Not to mention republishing your book under so many different titles. How many times can one keep doing that? And what's wrong with sticking to the same title, if it was so well-received?

[Mars · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection. Favorite stories: White Turtle, Fruit Stall, Fish-Hair Woman, The Sadness Collector, and Border Lover.