The Samsons: Two Novels

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

F. Sionil José is the author of more than fifteen books — novels, stories, essays, and verse — and is one of the leading literary voices of Asia and the Pacific Rim. He is a publisher of books and of the journal Solidarity, a bookseller, a teacher, and a founding member of the PEN Center in the Philippines.

José studied medicine at the University of Santo Tomas, and then the liberal arts, working part-time for the U.S. Army and at newspaper jobs. Afterward, he joined the United States Information Service as an assistant editor and ultimately spent ten years with the Manila Times. His writings won three Palanca Awards and three from the National Press Club. In time he won the Ramon Magsaysay Award in Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communications Arts. To date, his work has been published in fifteen countries.

José (called “Frankie”) and his wife, Teresita (“Tessie”) have four sons and two daughters, most living in California.