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Awaiting Trespass

“A writer of great imagination and moral authority” American Library Association Bulletin

“Ty-Casper’s prose glitters” PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“Ty-Casper’s ear for both inner and outer voices produces biting satire as well as compassionate insight” SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

This acclaimed novel from the Philippines gives an unsurpassed portrait of the Marcos period as well as being a timeless, sophisticated comedy of bourgeois manners in Manila society.

A three-day wake in Manila mourning the aged playboy Don Severino Gil is the setting for social satire and personal awakening. Unusually, his coffin is closed. Why?

Among the powerful Gil family of doctors, lawyers, socialites, priests, businessmen as well as the rare student dissident, speculation grows rife, but soon moves on to the topic of the Pope’s planned visit to the Philippines. Religion, death, and the harsh realities of martial law crowd around them.

If the coffin is opened, who will have the courage to look inside?

Cover image: Deposition, the flag of the Philippines wrapping a body, original etching by Filipino artist Benedicto Cabrera (“BenCab”).