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cortanasreadingnook's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This heartbreaking novel of regret and guilt is an excellent introduction to Filipino authors. Jay Reguero is a seventeen-year-old senior who grew up in Detroit, Michigan. Having his life all laid out for him, everything suddenly topples over when he finds out that his cousin Jun was shot to death. So, he travels to the Philippines for spring break after 8 years to find out what happened to his cousin. He soon finds out that there are a lot more factors that played out to Jun’s untimely death.
"A universe where people do not die for doing what is right.”
Patron Saints of Nothing is painful yet genuine take on my culture, the life that I knew growing up, and is quite a reflective read, especially with the way he talks about issues that have plagued the country for decades.
As someone who has lived in the Philippines my whole life, I don’t think foreigners can even begin to understand how exhausting it is back there with the endless cycle of corruption and poverty. I appreciated how this book didn’t try to censor the realities that many Filipinos still face every day. And I am truly impressed at the amount of research that the author has done to be able to share this story with the world. This book expresses the feelings of Filipino kids who grew up to immigrant parents and has never thought about the motherland as their home and addresses detachment from one’s culture and traditions. Moreso, this was devised to make a reader uncomfortable as it discusses social issues from Jay’s perspective, one that has never lived and experienced the Philippines, making it raw, brutal, and if nothing but the truth. It is a reality check for people who think the country is a tropical paradise but is truly just showing the tip of the iceberg to its dark history with a long-battled control against the government for freedom of the press and media censorship. Many have died to gain freedom, but at what cost? The shadows of their martyrdom have loomed over the country, never to be acknowledged, never to be given justice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Homophobia, Addiction, Violence, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Body shaming and Gun violence
Minor: Animal death
kalmia31's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Classism, Genocide, Grief, Colonisation, and Death
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Violence, Homophobia, Racism, Murder, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Misogyny
Minor: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Sexual assault, and Alcohol
ariam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Police brutality, Death, Grief, and Child death
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, Addiction, and Trafficking
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