Only If You Can Find Me

Only If You Can Find Me is not only Patti Laurel’s first YA novel, it is also her first book. A SCBWI member who is now based in Hawaii, Patti was born and raised in San Pablo, Laguna - a town that is less than an hour away by car from Manila. Patti’s great grandmother is Maria Rizal, the sister of Philippine national hero Dr. Jose Rizal. No wonder that Patti has had this book inside her all this time, waiting to be born. Her family history, her birthplace, family members, historical events, all of these figure in Only If You Can Find Me.

During the book launch at Powerbooks in December 2005, quite a number of real people on which Patti based her characters were there - including her niece who is the inspiration for the story’s main character Samantha Plum. Some of Patti's fellow SCBWI members were also present, such as author and book reviewer Neni Sta. Romana Cruz, YA author Lin Flores, illustrator Beaulah Taguiwalo, and Karina Bolasco, Publishing Manager of Anvil Publishing - Patti's publisher.

Beaulah's 2 Cents