by Merlinda Bobis

the author:
Merlinda Carullo Bobis
Born in 1959

Bachelor of Arts, Aquinas University of Legaspi

Master of Arts, University of Santo Tomas, Manila

Doctorate of Creative Arts, University of Wollongong

member of Philippines organization Women Involved in Creating

Cultural Alternatives (WICCA)

resident in Australia since 1991

Lecturer, University of Wollongong

)
Characters
A dazzling feast of the senses, Banana Heart Summer captures the intensity of love

and hunger in all forms. The debut novel from award-winning writer Merlinda Bobis,

this mesmerizing tale portrays the world of a wise, sensitive twelve-year-old girl who

experiences an unforgettable summer during the early 1960s. Living in poverty with

her five siblings and their parents, Nenita dreams of a magical life, especially one

that will satisfy her cravings for succulent meals (as well as her longing for local

heartthrob Manolito). When she begins to cook for Miss Violeta “VV” Valenzuela, one

of the most sophisticated women in town, a new door is opened in Nenita’s life,

sometimes forcing her to choose between her family and her new source of income

and world-wise ways. Along the way, Nenita savors a remarkable journey of self-

discovery, sharing her recipes for all to enjoy.

Critical Questions
1. How do the novel’s three parts
reflect three phases of Nenita’s
experience during that pivotal
summer? What transition is
marked as she moves from “The
Heart of the Matter” to “The
Spleen of the Matter”? Who
“becomes a heart” in the final
scenes?
2. Nenita tells us that her
parents had very different
backgrounds. How did this
contribute to the tension
in the family? How did
her mother and father
justify their cycle of abuse
and remorse?
3. Does Nenita’s departure
make for a happy ending?
How would those decades
of her adult life have
unfolded if she had
remained a servant in her
homeland instead?
Conclusion
Motifs/Themes
• romantic yearning
• mouthwatering
• cuisine, and family
relations
1. Food is a ubiquitous presence
throughout the novel as it plays an
important cultural and psychological
role in the book.
2Bobis also sets food against the background of love as a
human emotion. From Bobis’s literary perspective, love and
food--or should we say “hunger”--are two sides of the same
coin as she demonstrates in the title of her first chapter: “For
those who love to love and eat/For those who long to love and
eat.”.