eating our words: writings about food

A delectable literary tour of new essays from the culinary underground and KSW Press,"eating our words" is a new limited edition chapbook, hand-bound and screen-printed by cartoonist Thien Pham. Edited by food critic, essayist, and editor Thy Tran, the collection features works by local writers Norman Bock, Celia Chung, Rose Mark, Vanessa Merina, Quarry Pak, and Debbie Sheen. Book design (left) by Thien Pham. (2005)
$7.00 (Sale $5.00)

October Light

"By fusing the bitterness and sweetness into each image and line, Tagami forces us to see more clearly the contradictions in our experience as American minorities."
--Russel Leong, Editor, Amerasia Journal

This collection of poems by Jeff Tagami is a startling, honest and poignant evocation of life growing up in the farm fields in and around Watsonville, California. (2nd Printing, 55 pages, 1987, ISBN 0-9609630-3-0)
$8.95

Texas Long Grain: Photographs by the Kearny Street Workshop

Texas Long Grain is the collaborative effort of Asian American photographers from all over America: from New York City to Little Rock to the Bay Area. The work highlights the photographer's involvement with their respective communities, reflecting the social conditions under which they and their subjects live and work. (59 pages, 1982, ISBN 0-9609630-1-4)
$12.00 (Sale $10.00)

Without Names: A Collection of Poems

This is a collection of 31 poems by 15 Bay Area Pilipino American writers, including Virginia R. Cerenio, Luis Syquia, Norman Jayo, Presco Tabios, Shirley Ancheta, Jeff Tagami, Mars Estrada and Lloyd Nebres. The poets cover a wide variety of subjects and techniques, each unique in their expression of the Pilipino experience -- in the fields of California, the crab fisheries of Alaska, the Taal Bantagas province of the Philippines -- yet universal in evoking images of love, family, and childhood. (64 pages, 1985, 1987, ISBN 0-9609630-2-2)
$8.95

Writings From the Long Table: A Collection of Works by the Students of Kearny Street Workshop

This anthology is the culminating product of the past year's KSW writing workshops. Located in the basement of the Nichiren Buddhist Church of America, the "long table" is where the seeds of many of these pieces were planted. (1999)
$5.00

Writings From the Long Table II

The sequel to the first anthology (above).
$5.00

Ed Badajos: A Retrospective

Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai'i, Ed Badajos was known primarily for his political cartoons, visual commentaries, and covers. His work appeared in the L.A. Free Press, The Staff, and the Berkeley Barb and gained further exposure through syndication in the underground press of the '60s and '70s. This 12 page booklet, originally a companion to an exhibit of Badajos' work, features drawings and poetry of the artist, as well as a brief history of his extensive community involvement. (1984)
$3

Trespassing Innocence

Virginia Cerenio is a second generation Filipino American who is the president of her own consulting firm and the President of the Board of Directors of Westbay Filipino Multiservices, Inc. which serves Filipino youth and their families. This collection of poems reflect Ms. Cerenio's deep involvement in her community, offering a heartfelt, intimate look at the people and events which have touched her life. (71 pages, 1989, ISBN 0-9609630-5-7)
$8.95

Heaven is Just Another Country

Kearny Street Workshop is proud to present this collection of poems by one of the Bay Area's most gifted Filipino American writers. Born in the Philippines and raised in San Francisco's Richmond district, Jacinto creates poems that, according to writer Jeff Tagami, "...more than a travelogue or a personal search of self-meaning and identity...map out a road we have all been on. His voice is both lyrical and broodingly earnest." (63 pages, 1996, ISBN 0-9609630-7-3)
$10.00

Pursuing Wild Bamboo: Portraits of Asian American Artists

This limited edition photo art book is based on Kearny Street Workshop's 1991 visual arts group exhibit by the same name. Pursuing Wild Bamboo offers an intimate glimpse into the personalities and motivations of: multimedia artist Chester Yoshida; Mount Shasta Taiko and professional Taiko drum maker Mark Miyoshi; graphic designer Leland Wong; and performance artist Brenda Wong Aoki. The inspirational and stunning black and white photographs are accompanied by text written by the photographers. (60 pages, 1992, ISBN 0-9609630-6-5)
$15.00 (Sale $10.00)

made in usa: Angel Island Shhh

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Book of Perceptions: Poetry by Truong Tran, Photography by Chung Hoang Chuong

Poet Truong Tran and photographer Chung Hoang Chuong explore issues of identity and culture between through the use of fragments in both the literary and visual arts. Combining the visions of two generations of Vietnamese Americans working in two different artistic mediums, the book attempts to address the complexities of the immigrant identity, that of those at the crossing of two cultures. Finalist for the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize, Fiction Category. (73 pages, 1999, ISBN 0-9609630-8-1)
$20.00

made in usa: Angel Island Shhh

This exhibition catalogue is designed to serve as a companion to artist Flo Oy Wong's traveling multi-media installation of the same title, as well as to stand on its own as a history and document of the Angel Island immigration era. Exploring the history of Chinese immigrants detained and interrogated in accordance with the racist immigration policy of the time, the exhibition "made in usa: Angel Island Shhh" features 25 American flags, quilted with rice sacks, each representing and revealing the true identity of a "paper person" detained at Angel Island between 1910 and 1940. The book contains an essay by the artist's brother, journalist Bill Wong, on the history of Angel Island, an essay by art critic/historian Moira Roth on Wong's artwork and the Angel Island Project, as well as a detailed catalogue of the flags and the history of each detainee represented, and a chronology of Wong's family history. (48 pages, 2000, ISBN 0-960-9630-9-X)
$15