‘The Mango Bride’ by Marivi Soliven: A Look into the Filipino Lifestyle

Most readers are accustomed to English novels written by foreign writers, so it took me by surprise when an English book that was recommended to me was written by a Filipino author.

The Mango Bride was definitely a breath of fresh air, knowing that most of my best reads are romance novels. The beauty of the book was that it highlighted the Philippines and one of its well-known weaknesses: impoverishment, as well as the difference between the rich and the poor.

The Author of Mango Bride, Marivi Soliven Blanco

It starts with the story of Amparo Guerrero, a woman formerly banished by her wealthy family because of a mistake that may ruin her family’s name, as she lives her life in California to start anew, and how she gets entangled with Beverly Obejas, a poor Filipina waitress hoping to live a better life by being married off to a rich and foreign husband, which brought her nothing but nightmares instead of a well-off life.

As sad as it is, the novel highlights the fact that having different circumstances will result to different fates, even with similar mistakes; the rich barely have to pay for their wrongdoings while the poor have to suffer for a lifetime. Despite this, the story still becomes an eye-opener to all Filipinos, especially to the youth, who would soon be in charge of the country’s future, as well as its next generations.

The Mango Bride tackles many of the Philippines’ flaws and imperfections, as well as our cultural practices and the undeniable spirit of hospitality and friendliness that Filipinos would always tend to have, which is why it would definitely have a huge impact on all sorts of readers, especially by our countrymen.