Young authors launch book on war stories

The CNMI’s youngest authors, together with the editing committee, launched Tuesday afternoon some 5,000 books that recount memories of the Battles of Saipan and Tinian, as told by the islands’ elders to the young authors.

Nearly 81 stories about the war were taken down and put to print by some 60 students from various schools on Saipan, including San Vicente Elementary School, Dandan Elementary School, Garapan Elementary School, Mount Carmel High School, and Oleai Elementary School, among others.

The book launching was held at the Office of Aging located in Chinatown.

According to Katharyn Tuten-Puckett, director for Pacific STAR, the book’s title, We Drank our Tears, was derived from a story in the book written by 8-year-old Christopher Flores Lam about his grandmother, Carmen Tudela Flores.

“We drank our tears,” recalled the elderly Flores, as she reflected on her memories of the war as a young child of just seven years old.

Despite the long hours spent working on the book, editors Alfred Ada, Jonas Barcinas, Christine Halloran, Angelica Iginoef-Mangarero, Augustina Limes, Noel Quitugua, Rory Starkey, Shelle Storelee, Anicia Tomokane, and Katharyn Tutun-Puckett said that that the children will now know about the war from the people who lived through it.

House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial expressed his appreciation for the time and effort each student put into writing the stories. “I want to encourage these young writers to someday write in Chamorro and Carolininan. I appreciate the time you’ve taken to display your talents,” he said.

“To the man’amko [elders], thank you for sharing your experiences. Because of the stories you’ve shared, future generations will have an idea of what the Marianas was like during the war,” Fitial added.

Jonas Barcinas, principal of Dandan Elementary School, also congratulated the young authors and recognized Tuten-Puckett for her commitment that made it possible to have the children share their talents in writing.

“[Tuten-Puckett’s] heart and her love are with the children. Today, we will be showing another legend of her hard work,” said Barcinas.

For Ray Crisostimo, a 16-year old student at Mount Carmel, it was an English project that several of this classmates—Jenise Takai, Emanuel Borja, Crystal Cabrera, Jakie Che, and Anneka Hofschneider—participated in.

Michael Deleon Guerrero, a Mount Carmel senior said, the project gave him the opportunity to learn about the war through the eyes of his grandmother, Maria C. Deleon Guerrero. Michael’s 10-year-old cousin, Yunis Deleon Guerrero, wrote a similar story about their grandmother’s experience.

Colleen Sablan, a student at Garapan Elementary School, said: “I think it’s a great experience to let the public know about my grandfather’s experience during the war. It took about a couple of month to write the story, but my mom and my sister helped me with it.”

The CNMI Humanities Council donated the funds to have the book published by the Pacific STAR Young Writers Foundation. The book is dedicated to the survivors of the World War II Battles of Saipan and Tinian, along with the 933 Chamorro and Carolinians who died in the war.

Complementary books were given to the young authors and elders included in the book.

We Drank our Tears will be sold at the Joeten Shopping Center in Susupe, Best Sellers, and National Office Supply at $20 each. (Cassie Dlg Fejeran)