#Friday56 & #BookBeginnings: Summer Solstice

For Book Beginnings: 

To open their doors to the New Year, the Romans invoked the God Janus, patron of doors and of beginnings, whose two faces (one staring forward, the other backward) caricature man's ability to dwell in the past while speeding into the future.
- p. 1 (from the first story "The Mass of St. Sylvestre") 

For Friday 56: 

It's the guitars, Mr. Estiva. They make even sacred songs native and contemporary. Especially to the young. We suspect organ music intimidates; that's why people don't sing in church. 

- p. 56 (from the story The Order of Melkizedek)

Synopsis of Summer Solstice and Other Stories by Nick Joaquin: Widely regarded as the greatest Filipino writer of the 20th century, Joaquin continued to write literary and journalistic pieces until his death on April 29, 2004, at the age of 86. Stories in this volume: -The Mass of St. Sylvestre -The Summer Solstice -The Order of Melkizedek

Check out my review of this Filipino-penned collection here.