By Randy Ribay
What an amazing and riveting book. This book hits all of the high notes, it is sad and sweet and finally very uplifting. Meet Jay (Jason) a young man that immigrated to the United States when he was an infant. He is now a senior in Michigan and has been accepted to U of M, but he has no idea what he wants to do with his life. As he marches down his last few days in high school, he is informed of the death of his cousin Jun. Even though, Jun still lives in the Philippines, Jay still considers him to be his closest relative and best friend. They have been exchanging letters for years, and Jay feels the guilt since he is a horrible pen pal. He also finds out that Jun was killed due to the Philippines war on drugs and a secret instagram message sends a picture confirming that Jun did nothing wrong. As Jay questions the meaning of life and death and what he wants to do with his future, he comes up with a great idea.
Jay's plan is to spend his spring break in the Philippines visiting family and looking into the incidents surrounding Jun's untimely demise. In order to do this he needs to make the trek on his own, without his parents. His parents finally relent and he is allowed to go, but he has some rules. Namely, he is to stay with family and he must not mention Jun, especially to Tito Manning. He quickly agrees hoping he can find a way to investigate, ask questions and find his secret informant. What he discovers in the Philippines is that nothing is as it appears, even when he thinks he has discovered the truth he will be surprised. Finally, the family is allowed to grieve and hopefully move forward.
In all of the investigation and sight seeing, Jun discovers a new respect for his forgotten culture and a romantic interest. If nothing else, he learns that he is woefully ignorant of the history and tribulations of the Philippines. He does not speak Tagalog or any of the languages of the country and he has no concept of the depth of poverty and crime that is prevalent in the country. His cousin Grace introduces him to an acquaintance Mia, a journalism student, who agrees to help him find out about Jun. This bond quickly deepens to a mutual respect and attachment. After his brief trip to the Philippines, makes some major life decisions, about who he is and what he wants to do, but can he convince his parents to be on board?
I loved this book, it was heart warming, though provoking and wrenching. It made me wonder if when I leave will I have made a positive impact. I am giving this book all five stars! I love books that give a view into different cultures and leaves a lasting understanding. Anything that opens eyes to what is going on around us is awesome! At the end of the book there is also a very informative section for further information. This book is appropriate for 7th grade on up and is an incredible read!
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