Snail Fever Poems of Two Decades

This book is a collection of poems selected by the author from the various works he wrote from about 1997 to 2016. The poems deal with the mystery and wonder of Nature, of the human mind and heart. They also deal with history from a fresh perspective. The poems that denounce the exploitation of the weak by those who usurp power have their origins in the author’s own experience of poverty and oppression. There are at least two love poems here, as well the sonnet that was favorably reviewed by National Artist Edith L. Tiempo in her book, Six Poetry Formats and the Transforming Image.

PRAISE FOR FRANCIS “BUTCH” MACANSANTOS FROM NATIONAL ARTIST IN LITERATURE EDITH L. TIEMPO: “Butch Macansantos… surprises (content and craft-wise) with every book authored by him that I am fortunate to read! More of the same, Butch! –With love and thanks, Mom E., Montemar, Sibulan, Negros Or., May 16, 2010.”

About the Author

Francis C. Macansantos was born in Cotabato City, grew up in Zamboanga City, and has been a resident of Baguio City since 1981. He was educated at the Ateneo de Zamboanga, MSU Marawi, Xavier University, and Silliman University where he obtained a Master of Arts in Creative Writing. A five-time Palanca award winner in English Poetry, Macansantos won the NCCA (National Commission for Culture and the Arts) Writer’s Prize for Epic Poetry in 2003. He has three books of poetry: The Words and Other Poems (UP Press 1997), Womb of Water, Breasts of Earth (NCCA 2007), and Balsa: Poemas Chabacano (NCCA 2011). Balsa, a collection of 31 poems in Chabacano, with translations into English, was finalist in the National Book Awards for Poetry in English in 2012. Macansantos has taught at Silliman University, MSU Marawi, and the University of the Philippines. In 2014, Macansantos was one of the recipients of the Maria Faust Sonnet Prize given at the Shakespeare Festival held in Minnesota. His poetry and prose have been anthologized here and abroad.