Out from northwestern university press/curbstone books
on may 15, 2025
A young Filipino writer’s odyssey toward home, in the wake of the loss of her poet father
Feeling untethered after her beloved poet father passes away while she is living abroad, Monica Macansantos decides to return to the Philippines to regain her bearings. But with her father gone and her adult life rooted in the United States and New Zealand, can the land of her birth still serve as a place of healing?
In fifteen richly felt essays, Macansantos considers her family’s history in the Philippines, her own experiences as an exile, and the parent who was the heart of her family’s kitchen, whether standing at the stove to prepare dinner or sitting at the table to scribble in his notebook. Macansantos finds herself remaking her father’s chicken adobo, but also closely rereading his poems. As she reckons with his identity as an artist, she also comes into her own as a writer, and she invites us to consider whether it is possible to carry our homes with us wherever we go.
Praise
“Returning to My Father’s Kitchen is about what is left behind—the ghosts, apparitions, and hauntings of people. This book is bold and sharply observed, giving voice to those lost in the margins of literature. Intimate and candid, any reader would feel solace in Macansantos’s company.” --Grace Talusan, author of The Body Papers: A Memoir
“A book about getting knocked around and the supernatural strength it takes to get back up again. A portrait of the artist as sous chef to a dearly departed dad, tango-dancing necromancer, and—most deliciously—world-class literary bruiser. Sudden and mysterious as a perfectly executed recipe, or grief itself. Unmistakably magical.” --Greg Marshall, author of Leg
"What Monica taps into is the long arm of family stretched around us. The way our parents form us and then we leave them. And then they leave us. Monica writes about what remains. This is a beautiful collection that resonates with family, memory, love and longing." --Kim Foster, James Beard award-winning author of The Meth Lunches: Food and Longing in an American City
"Returning to My Father’s Kitchen is both a revealing portrait of this Filipino author’s life and a collection of flavorful, richly satisfying prose—less a memoir, more of a feast." --Las Vegas Weekly
“Fifteen richly textured essays . . . at once a coming of age of a writer and a foray into what it means to live in other people’s imaginings of being Filipino.” --Electric Literature
“Personal yet strongly thematic, exploring subjects such as navigating grief and disconnections from culture, and how to resist the deliberate and casual cruelties others can inflict. I love the clarity, maturity and fierce intelligence in [Macansantos's] writing. Essay fans should snap this up.” --Radio New Zealand
“Every essay is a gem, and I could easily write about each piece. By the time readers get to the closing piece, they will feel as if they have gotten to know Francis–his dreams for his daughter and for his writing, his love for his wife and daughter, his passion for cooking and nature, his belief in truth and justice.” --Positively Filipino
"An intimate reckoning with love, loss, and belonging, Monica Macansantos’ essays turn kitchens into sanctuaries, memories into maps, and vulnerability into fearless art." -- Rappler
Feeling untethered after her beloved poet father passes away while she is living abroad, Monica Macansantos decides to return to the Philippines to regain her bearings. But with her father gone and her adult life rooted in the United States and New Zealand, can the land of her birth still serve as a place of healing?
In fifteen richly felt essays, Macansantos considers her family’s history in the Philippines, her own experiences as an exile, and the parent who was the heart of her family’s kitchen, whether standing at the stove to prepare dinner or sitting at the table to scribble in his notebook. Macansantos finds herself remaking her father’s chicken adobo, but also closely rereading his poems. As she reckons with his identity as an artist, she also comes into her own as a writer, and she invites us to consider whether it is possible to carry our homes with us wherever we go.
Praise
“Returning to My Father’s Kitchen is about what is left behind—the ghosts, apparitions, and hauntings of people. This book is bold and sharply observed, giving voice to those lost in the margins of literature. Intimate and candid, any reader would feel solace in Macansantos’s company.” --Grace Talusan, author of The Body Papers: A Memoir
“A book about getting knocked around and the supernatural strength it takes to get back up again. A portrait of the artist as sous chef to a dearly departed dad, tango-dancing necromancer, and—most deliciously—world-class literary bruiser. Sudden and mysterious as a perfectly executed recipe, or grief itself. Unmistakably magical.” --Greg Marshall, author of Leg
"What Monica taps into is the long arm of family stretched around us. The way our parents form us and then we leave them. And then they leave us. Monica writes about what remains. This is a beautiful collection that resonates with family, memory, love and longing." --Kim Foster, James Beard award-winning author of The Meth Lunches: Food and Longing in an American City
"Returning to My Father’s Kitchen is both a revealing portrait of this Filipino author’s life and a collection of flavorful, richly satisfying prose—less a memoir, more of a feast." --Las Vegas Weekly
“Fifteen richly textured essays . . . at once a coming of age of a writer and a foray into what it means to live in other people’s imaginings of being Filipino.” --Electric Literature
“Personal yet strongly thematic, exploring subjects such as navigating grief and disconnections from culture, and how to resist the deliberate and casual cruelties others can inflict. I love the clarity, maturity and fierce intelligence in [Macansantos's] writing. Essay fans should snap this up.” --Radio New Zealand
“Every essay is a gem, and I could easily write about each piece. By the time readers get to the closing piece, they will feel as if they have gotten to know Francis–his dreams for his daughter and for his writing, his love for his wife and daughter, his passion for cooking and nature, his belief in truth and justice.” --Positively Filipino
"An intimate reckoning with love, loss, and belonging, Monica Macansantos’ essays turn kitchens into sanctuaries, memories into maps, and vulnerability into fearless art." -- Rappler
Press
Book Riot's 10 New Nonfiction Releases of May 2025
Lit Hub's "The Hub" (News, Notes, Talk): May 13, 2025
Electric Lit (interview with Cherry Lou Sy)
Colorado Review (interview)
Radio New Zealand (afternoons with Jesse Mulligan)
LIMINAL (Australia)
The American Writers Museum's List of Filipino-American Memoirs
Storizen's 10 Best Nonfiction Books to Read in May 2025
Nevada Public Radio's Desert Companion
Rappler (Mountain Beacon)
Las Vegas Weekly
Positively Filipino
Lit Hub:
"Monica Macansantos on Finding Her Voice and Reuniting with Her Father Through Used Books"
The Writer's Digest:
"And Now, I Know: Learning to Take Up Space as a Writer"
Electric Lit:
"9 Books About Filipino Fathers"
Arts Calling Podcast (interview with Jaime Alejandro)
Listen & Be Heard (interview with Tony Robles)
Speaking of Marvels
Incidental Noyes (Northwestern University Press blog)
Black Mountain Institute Library Sessions (Seafood City Edition)
Newsroom (book excerpt)
Los Angeles Public Library's Reading List for Filipino-American History Month
San Diego Public Library's Reading List for Filipino-American History Month
Phi Kappa Phi Forum (Spring 2025 Bookshelf)
Book Riot's 10 New Nonfiction Releases of May 2025
Lit Hub's "The Hub" (News, Notes, Talk): May 13, 2025
Electric Lit (interview with Cherry Lou Sy)
Colorado Review (interview)
Radio New Zealand (afternoons with Jesse Mulligan)
LIMINAL (Australia)
The American Writers Museum's List of Filipino-American Memoirs
Storizen's 10 Best Nonfiction Books to Read in May 2025
Nevada Public Radio's Desert Companion
Rappler (Mountain Beacon)
Las Vegas Weekly
Positively Filipino
Lit Hub:
"Monica Macansantos on Finding Her Voice and Reuniting with Her Father Through Used Books"
The Writer's Digest:
"And Now, I Know: Learning to Take Up Space as a Writer"
Electric Lit:
"9 Books About Filipino Fathers"
Arts Calling Podcast (interview with Jaime Alejandro)
Listen & Be Heard (interview with Tony Robles)
Speaking of Marvels
Incidental Noyes (Northwestern University Press blog)
Black Mountain Institute Library Sessions (Seafood City Edition)
Newsroom (book excerpt)
Los Angeles Public Library's Reading List for Filipino-American History Month
San Diego Public Library's Reading List for Filipino-American History Month
Phi Kappa Phi Forum (Spring 2025 Bookshelf)
For more information about the book, here is a downloadable Press Kit!
To learn about my author appearances, click here!
Want to support my book? Order it from Northwestern University Press and use discount code NUP2025 to get 25% off! (They also ship everywhere in the world!)
Or get a SIGNED, PERSONALIZED copy from Book People in Austin, or from Bel Canto Books in Long Beach!
If you're in the Philippines, get it from Fully Booked!
Or get it from , The Writer's Block in Las Vegas, Brazos Bookstore in Houston, Prairie Lights Bookstore in Iowa City, Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle, City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, Thriftbooks, Unity Books (Aotearoa New Zealand), Booktopia (Australia and New Zealand), Indigo Chapters (Canada), Waterstones (United Kingdom), or...
Order it from your local independent bookstore!
Are you a teacher who'd like to consider my book for course adoption, or a reviewer interested in spreading the word about my book? Click here to request for an Exam, Desk, or Review copy.
To learn about my author appearances, click here!
Want to support my book? Order it from Northwestern University Press and use discount code NUP2025 to get 25% off! (They also ship everywhere in the world!)
Or get a SIGNED, PERSONALIZED copy from Book People in Austin, or from Bel Canto Books in Long Beach!
If you're in the Philippines, get it from Fully Booked!
Or get it from , The Writer's Block in Las Vegas, Brazos Bookstore in Houston, Prairie Lights Bookstore in Iowa City, Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle, City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, Thriftbooks, Unity Books (Aotearoa New Zealand), Booktopia (Australia and New Zealand), Indigo Chapters (Canada), Waterstones (United Kingdom), or...
Order it from your local independent bookstore!
Are you a teacher who'd like to consider my book for course adoption, or a reviewer interested in spreading the word about my book? Click here to request for an Exam, Desk, or Review copy.
Essays from this collection have appeared, in slightly different form, in Colorado Review, Lunch Ticket, The Hopkins Review, Bennington Review, and About Place Journal, among others, and have been recognized as Notable in the Best American Essays 2023, 2022, 2021, and 2016. The author would like to thank the editors of journals who published essays in this collection for amplifying her work.