(Georgiana Quintanilla Tyquiengco, author of Always Never Knowing.)
The University of Press is launching Always Never Knowing (ANK) by Georgiana Quintanilla Tyquiengco, a debut collection of fictional short stories that follow Jiavonna “Vonna” Cepeda as she navigates adolescence in southern Guam.
The book launch will be held from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at Dusit Place in Tumon, located across the Guam Aquarium. The event is open to the public and will include an author reading, book signing, and interactive displays. Refreshments will also be provided.
(UOG Press to launch Always Never Knowing, a powerful coming-of-age story collection for youth on Guam.)
(UOG Press to launch Always Never Knowing, a powerful coming-of-age story collection for youth on Guam.)
Tyquiengco’s short stories explore the universal experiences in the daily life of teenagers. Filled with humor and wit, Vonna must contend with first crushes, evolving friendships, parental expectations and her expectations of herself as she navigates the often-bewildering transition from teenager to young adult.
“I’m proud of the humor and heart in this book that rings true to Pacific Islanders. Our culture is easy to misinterpret or make a caricature of,” says Tyquiengco. “I think it’s important to note the depth of our everyday experiences, not just the postcard or parody version of island life.”
ANK also explores heavier themes unique to teenagers growing up on Guam, including deeper questions of bicultural identity and the ongoing search for belonging within the cultural mosaic of Micronesia.
Award-winning Pacific literature author, Kristiana Kahakauwila, praises the collection for its unique blend of narrative forms that offer a fresh and immersive description of adolescence.
“‘Meet Althea’ is a particular standout, blending different forms—emails, poems, text messages, school reports— to offer understanding for the narrator’s mother and mental illness. Beautiful reading for any middle or high school student,” says Kahakauwila.
Tyquiengco hopes to resonate with the youth on island who are contending with their own struggles of belonging and becoming. Through the perspective of a teenage daughter, she challenges the idea that parenthood and adulthood are states of all-knowing certainty.
“I hope that readers who pick up this book, especially young readers in the Marianas, can recognize familiar places and voices as they get to know my characters and find comfort in them. Above all, I hope seeing themselves and their home in modern fiction will inspire them to create the representation they want to see,” says Tyquiengco.
Always Never Knowing is now available for pre-order online at uogpress.com and in-store at UOG Press for a special early-bird price of $15. After the promotion ends on Monday, June 16, the book will retail for $17.
Following the launch, Always Never Knowing will be made available at local bookstores.
For more information, contact UOG Press Publicist Via De Fant at defantv@triton.uog.edu or (671) 735-2153.
