The Camden Public Library continues its Millay Society Author Series with a special Author Teatime and Discussion featuring acclaimed food writer Annabelle Tometich and author/baker Abi Balingit.

Join CPL, Monday, July 28, at 3 p.m., in the historic Reading Room of the Camden Public Library, for an afternoon of tea and literary inspiration. This event is free for Millay Society members and is open to the public with a suggested donation of $15.

Registration is required for this event. Visit librarycamden.org to sign up.

Annabelle Tometich and Abi Balingit will discuss food, family, and the nurturing power of storytelling. This special event offers a rare opportunity to connect with these talented authors in an intimate setting, while enjoying a selection of fine teas and treats. The Mango Tre: A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony by Annabelle Tometich and Mayumu: Filipino American Desserts Remixed will be for sale at the event with an opportunity for signing. 

When the pandemic started her lonely work-from-home life in 2020, Abi Balingit channeled all her energy into the one thing that brought her joy: baking. In her tiny, dimly lit, shared kitchen, she produced hundreds of “pasalubong” (souvenir) boxes filled with especially creative treats that blended the Filipino treats and Western style baked goods she grew up with. Each time, she’d sell out within hours and donated the proceeds to support her community in need.

Now Balingit shares some of these cult-favorite desserts with Mayumu (which means “sweet” in one of the 8 major languages in Philippines), "an incredibly fresh baking book of 75 recipes that span from the never-before-seen, incredibly inventive flavor combinations that Abi dreamed up, to the more familiar, classic Filipino favorites," said CPL.

Throughout, essays following Balingit’s heritage and self-discovery introduce the flavors and experiences that have shaped her life, from visiting the motherland and her parents’ birthplace in Pampanga, Philippines, to California where she grew up and went to school, to her current home, Brooklyn, New York.

"This beautiful book is a celebration of the Filipino American experience, perfect for home bakers wanting both nostalgic and excitingly new recipes," said CPL.

Annabelle Tometich went from medical school reject to line cook to journalist to author. She spent 18 years as a food writer and restaurant critic for The News-Press in her hometown of Fort Myers, Florida. Her first book, The Mango Tree: A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony was called “sweet, sharp” by The New York Times, and was named among the best books of 2024 by The Washington Post and NPR.

With clear-eyed compassion and piercing honesty, The Mango Tree is a family saga that navigates the tangled branches of Annabelle’s life, from her childhood days in an overflowing house flooded by balikbayan boxes, vegetation, and juicy mangoes, to her winding path from medical school hopeful to restaurant critic. It is a love letter to her fellow Filipino Americans, her lost younger self, and the beloved fruit tree at the heart of her family. But above all, it is an ode to Tometich’s hot-blooded, whip-smart mother Josefina, a woman who made a life and a home of her own, and without whom Tometich would not have herself.