The Sirena by the Sea
From our award-winning CHamoru legends book to collections of heart-warming and humorous stories from throughout Oceania, this book bundle offers stories you can always return to whether you are reading by the beach in Guåhan or missing home from far away.
Each bundle comes with a free tote bag.
$86 $65
Always Never Knowing
Juanit
CHamoru Legends
Ocean Mother
breathe. Journal
Book Descriptions
Always Never Knowing
Always Never Knowing is a collection of stories following Jiavonna “Vonna” Cepeda through her adolescence in southern Guam. Each short story explores different moments in Vonna’s life when she must balance the expectations of her strict parents with her own desires and expectations for herself. Each new experience seems to bring more questions than answers—about her home, her relationships, and her cultural identity. Vonna must decide whom she wants to become in a world that seems to be constantly shifting around her. With her humor, wit, and budding wisdom, she navigates family struggles with mental illness, changing friendships, and even first crushes.
Always Never Knowing’s richly textured stories interweave poetry, text messages, secret notes passed between friends, and more, offering a fresh and immersive glimpse into adolescence and a village girl’s coming of age in contemporary Guam.
Juanit tells the story of a girl of mixed ancestry who, after losing her mother at a young age, is uprooted from her home in Guam and moved to California in the 1960s. There she must navigate both sides of her identity. Confused and longing for acceptance, Juanit struggles to find genuine affection. A series of painful events lead her back to Guam, only to discover that she feels out of place there, too. Will Juanit make peace with her identity and overcome her hardships? Note: This novel explores themes that may be unsettling for some readers, such as sexual abuse, teen pregnancy, drug use, and the loss of a parent.
CHamoru Legends: A Gathering of Stories
CHamoru Legends: A Gathering of Stories retells 12 CHamoru legends and includes personal reflections from author Teresita Lourdes Perez, unique illustrations for each legend by Guam artists, and versions of the legends in the CHamoru language by Maria Ana Tenorio Rivera. The publication is a reversible book featuring the legends in English on one side and in CHamoru on the other. Through these multiple layers of interpretation, the book weaves together strips of wisdom and cultural lessons like the leaves used to shape the CHamoru guåfak, or mat, upon which the earliest CHamoru storytellers sat sharing their versions of these timeless tales.
2019 Independent Publisher Book Awards Bronze Medal recipient for Best Regional Non-Fiction for Australia/New Zealand/Pacific Rim.
Ocean Mother
Ocean Mother weaves together riveting poems from strands of Arielle Taitano Lowe's memories growing up as a Chamoru girl in Guåhan (Guam), layered with realizations she made across the ocean and upon her return home. In this brave act of sharing, Lowe unravels generations of trauma and begins to heal herself, her family, and her home.
The breathe. Journal
The breathe. Journal is intended to be a space for safe expression and creativity. Breath life onto its pages with intention and care.
Throughout the journal are lines of poetry from the book Dry Nights by Pep Borja. There are also short prompts intended to help writers and artists reflect on their precious life, the people they can count on, and the things that bring them joy.
breathe. is part of an effort to raise awareness about the value of creative expression in suicide prevention. This journal was published by the University of Guam Press with support from the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center’s Focus on Life Program (SAMHSA grant #H79SM082116).
