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Ani #40: Katutubo
432 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 5, 2019
A prodigious anthology of works by various less-known writers around the country. "Ani" is the literary journal of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Every other year, they select a theme and then call for contributions. Thus, "Ani" is a literary space for budding writers in the Philippines. "Ani 40" is the 2017-2018 issue and its theme is "Katutubo" or Native.
I am the founder of Pinoy Reads Pinoy Books, a 6-year old book club that focuses on books written by local authors. Because of this, I was requested to give my reaction to the book when it was launched on 26 October 2018. A week prior to the launch, I received the final manuscript. In between my day's job in the office and Toastmasters meetings, I squeezed in time to read this 432-page bilingual anthology. On the night of the launch, I delivered a 5-minute reaction speech in Filipino and got favorable feedback from the two emcees. The funny thing was that when I was about to leave the stage, I stopped and waited for them to reach for my hand to shake. I thought that I was in a Toastmasters meeting.
The book is divided into 4 parts: (1) "Antolohiyang Marawi" (Marawi Anthology) that focuses on the battle of Marawi that started on 27 May 20172017 and lasted for 5 months. The stories in this part give better perspectives compared to the ones we all heard and watched on TV because they were all written by the affected citizens primarily those connected in Mindanao State University (MSU); (2) "Prosa" (Prose) contains all the fiction, creative non-fiction and essays about the different indigenous people (IP) in the Philippines. My favorite article here is Lualhati Abreu's "Ang Lumad sa Mindanao" (The Lumads in Mindanao) that became the basis of my question-and-answer session speech last Thursday in The Emerald Toastmasters Club; (3) "Tula" (Poems) is my least favorite part not because there are no good verses here but because I generally prefer prose over poetry; and (4) "Dula" (Play) is my other favorite primarily because of "Ang Tagapagligtas" (The Savior) by Andrew Bonifacio L. Clete. At first, it reminded me of "Waiting for Godot" by Samuel Beckett. Then later I thought that it was even more solid with the way Clete hinted on his message.
During the book discussion today, we gave our initial reactions to the book. Afterwards, we shared our personal experiences with regard to the different indigenous people that we have so far encountered in our lives. Someone said that it is easy to say that we care for the rights of indigenous people but when we are with them, we could be lost on how to behave or treat them as they could so much different from ourselves.
We closed the discussion by each of us saying our final thoughts about the book. A couple of us said that the book was an eye opener. Another one expressed her doubts whether exposing through social media is helping IP. A mountaineering member said that he is part of the group that installs solar panel in the IP community in the north. His friend recommended that we buy the products done by IP. When my turn came, I said that having finished (only 2 among the 12 members who came to the event) reading the book, my daily routine will remain the same. Come Monday, for example, I will still be in the office at 7am and will leave at 11pm. I will still have an American boss. I will still be in front of my computer for almost 16 hours. However, when I hear about indigenous people in Mindanao, my heart would beat fast, my eyes would probably dilate because I know them and I care for them. I just pray that my heart would guide me on what to do to help them and my eyes would reflect the reality of their life's travails for others to see. Most of the indigenous people around continue to be marginalized and denied of their rights as Filipino citizens.
I highly recommend this book to Filipinos who are clueless or apathetic to what injustices the Lumads or any indigenous groups are experiencing.
I am the founder of Pinoy Reads Pinoy Books, a 6-year old book club that focuses on books written by local authors. Because of this, I was requested to give my reaction to the book when it was launched on 26 October 2018. A week prior to the launch, I received the final manuscript. In between my day's job in the office and Toastmasters meetings, I squeezed in time to read this 432-page bilingual anthology. On the night of the launch, I delivered a 5-minute reaction speech in Filipino and got favorable feedback from the two emcees. The funny thing was that when I was about to leave the stage, I stopped and waited for them to reach for my hand to shake. I thought that I was in a Toastmasters meeting.
The book is divided into 4 parts: (1) "Antolohiyang Marawi" (Marawi Anthology) that focuses on the battle of Marawi that started on 27 May 20172017 and lasted for 5 months. The stories in this part give better perspectives compared to the ones we all heard and watched on TV because they were all written by the affected citizens primarily those connected in Mindanao State University (MSU); (2) "Prosa" (Prose) contains all the fiction, creative non-fiction and essays about the different indigenous people (IP) in the Philippines. My favorite article here is Lualhati Abreu's "Ang Lumad sa Mindanao" (The Lumads in Mindanao) that became the basis of my question-and-answer session speech last Thursday in The Emerald Toastmasters Club; (3) "Tula" (Poems) is my least favorite part not because there are no good verses here but because I generally prefer prose over poetry; and (4) "Dula" (Play) is my other favorite primarily because of "Ang Tagapagligtas" (The Savior) by Andrew Bonifacio L. Clete. At first, it reminded me of "Waiting for Godot" by Samuel Beckett. Then later I thought that it was even more solid with the way Clete hinted on his message.
During the book discussion today, we gave our initial reactions to the book. Afterwards, we shared our personal experiences with regard to the different indigenous people that we have so far encountered in our lives. Someone said that it is easy to say that we care for the rights of indigenous people but when we are with them, we could be lost on how to behave or treat them as they could so much different from ourselves.
We closed the discussion by each of us saying our final thoughts about the book. A couple of us said that the book was an eye opener. Another one expressed her doubts whether exposing through social media is helping IP. A mountaineering member said that he is part of the group that installs solar panel in the IP community in the north. His friend recommended that we buy the products done by IP. When my turn came, I said that having finished (only 2 among the 12 members who came to the event) reading the book, my daily routine will remain the same. Come Monday, for example, I will still be in the office at 7am and will leave at 11pm. I will still have an American boss. I will still be in front of my computer for almost 16 hours. However, when I hear about indigenous people in Mindanao, my heart would beat fast, my eyes would probably dilate because I know them and I care for them. I just pray that my heart would guide me on what to do to help them and my eyes would reflect the reality of their life's travails for others to see. Most of the indigenous people around continue to be marginalized and denied of their rights as Filipino citizens.
I highly recommend this book to Filipinos who are clueless or apathetic to what injustices the Lumads or any indigenous groups are experiencing.
January 14, 2019
The Poetry Collection sucks but the Marawi Anthology rocks.
January 8, 2019
"i'll borrow the thoughts of Catriona Gray, it's very poor and it's very sad." -Ella Betos. in a brighter side, there's a handful of good stories here, the poems... uhmmm. maybe i'm just not a poem person.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews