National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose died Thursday evening at the Makati Medical Center.
In a Facebook post by the Philippine Center of International PEN which Jose himself founded, the literary titan was scheduled to undergo an angioplasty this Friday, January 7 but apparently died in his sleep, according to his wife, Tessie Jovellanos Jose.
Jose was declared dead at 9:30 p.m. He had just turned 97 last December 3.
A native of Rosales, Pangasinan, Francisco Sionil Jose or simply F. Sionil Jose is regarded as one of the most widely-read Filipino writers in the English language. Among his best-known novels and short stories include the Rosales Saga series, Ermita, Waywaya: Eleven Filipino Short Stories, Viajero and Two Filipino Women.
Aside from being honored as National Artist for Literature, Jose also received numerous other accolades including the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts, Carlos Palanca Memorial Award for Literature, Pablo Neruda Centennial Award and the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres.
He also owned the Solidaridad bookshop in Ermita, a popular hangout for writers and reputed to have the widest selection of Filipiniana titles in the country.