Book Review: PLAYGROUND by Richard Powers

Playground by Richard Powers
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

(Not a review, just a heart-full/brainless rave by a fan about someone who draws meaning out of contemporary chaos)

"What are all creatures - even me - doing at all times but playing in the world, playing before their tinkering Lord?"

If one had never heard of Richard Powers before this book, this fact would tell us that he is no ordinary author: his latest novel was included in the Booker Longlist even before the book’s release.

I remember reading my first Richard Powers in 2021 (his latest then was BEWILDERMENT), and being completely blown away by how easily he cracked both brain and heart open, and how he effortlessly blended so many fields of study in his book. He is that rare author who makes his reader care deeply for whatever he’s writing about, whether it be trees (the Pulitzer prize winning THE OVERSTORY) or how classical music knows no race (THE TIME OF OUR SINGING, still my favorite of all eight of his works I’ve consumed). And ever since then, he has been my favorite author.

Powers has a way of putting a human face on the greatest concerns of humanity, and telling it in the most profound prose. He’s unafraid to break hearts if needed, to get his point across, but even the tragic ones always end with hope. What varies is the time and the place, but regardless of where it’s set, his words bestow the sacredness of sheer love on whatever/whoever he writes about. Throughout the decades (he’s written one novel every 3 or 4 years, since 1985) he sets down the current generation’s great moral dilemma of the day, allowing us to glimpse a way forward.

PLAYGROUND is no different. If we reduce this book to a mere formula, it would be something like “Save the oceans + Beware of AI,” or “Four different people all over the globe are drawn to Makatea in French Polynesia, which might as well be the center of the world” and it would at once be correct yet completely wrong.

Because a writer such as Powers, and his books, defy diminishment in all forms. They do the opposite: they enlarge mind and heart. And while PLAYGROUND isn’t quite his best work (I’m really partial to THE TIME OF OUR SINGING, as you can tell since this is the second time I’ve title-dropped it), it is a fine, fine novel that a lesser author would be proud to call his masterpiece.

The frame narrative is genius. It begins with the Polynesian myth of creation, then what seems to be the unburdening of a man approaching death and dementia. A long kind of deathbed confession. But to whom is he speaking? Who is narrating, who is writing? The realization, when it came, hit me with the bodily force of an earthquake.

Come read and find out, and in the process, rejoice in this communal act of creation books offer.

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Book Review: THE THREE-CORNERED SUN by Linda Ty-Casper

The Three-Cornered Sun by Linda Ty-Casper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“A nation without a soul should not be defended.”

It is often said of the two sexes that men tend to focus on airy ideals while women dwell on the practical, earthy details that make up daily life. I can very much believe this to be the case with this historical novel written by a Harvard-educated Filipina such as Linda Ty-Casper. She benefited from the extraordinary wealth of detail of someone who read and listened to primary sources, which the author did with her grandmother (the book is dedicated to her).

Gabriela Paez Viardo De Valesquez (1871-1953) whose memory of the Revolution of 1896 is the touchstone of this novel in which characters of fiction reenact history, the main protagonist.

The dedication matters because of the name: Viardo, and because of the acknowledgement that the protagonist is not a character, but history itself.

To read of history in textbooks is to see it as a smooth flow of cause-and-effect, focusing on heroes so far removed from the mortal coil, they seem more saint and half-god than human. Yet in our hearts we know it could not have been thus, which makes this 21st century reader grateful for the unique value of this novel.

The novel’s protagonists, apart from History, are the different members of the Viardo family. All fall under the shadow of the Revolution, though in different ways. What Linda Ty-Casper does so well is spell out the stakes for each type of Filipino, depending on his pre-Revolution station, and what he stands to gain or lose.

Familiarity with actual historical events is a given for the reader, as the author assumes we know the basic timeline of the War for Independence. But reading this book makes one realize that acing a history exam full of dates is nothing compared to the realization of the absolute chaos of the times, when Filipinos dared to rise against Spanish priests and rulers because of the ideals spread by three priests (Gomburza), a doctor who penned subversive thoughts (Jose Rizal), and a leader of a secret society who dared raise his bolo for freedom (Andres Bonifacio).

Linda Ty-Casper shows how the events transpired slowly, and so messily. “Glory” is the last word one will think of the revolution, after reading this book. The confusion of being swept along the tides of passion on both sides, the ugliness of human nature shown in the selfish who focus on self-aggrandizement and comfort above every loyalty, is portrayed in absolutely horrible scenes written in so simple language that it adds to the realism, and therefore, to the horror.

Anecdotes fill the pages, so full of detail they resonate as true, so oddly specific that one believes they could not have been made up.

There is the mother, one of many who join the hordes of humanity fleeing the Spanish cavalry, whose baby is shot and carries her still despite being told to let go.

There is the indio who asks if God is on the side of the Kastila because “all images of saints resemble them,” revealing “the reason many hesitated in the beginning, why those who finally joined the revolution thought they had condemned themselves in trying to save the country.”

Then there is the eagerness with which many Katipuneros embraced the amnesty of 1897 because it meant sleeping on dry ground, instead of awaiting capture or death in the pouring rain.

One scene that stood out for this reader featured the war photographer who interrupted a Kastila about to kill a Katipunero, calling out the ideal poses so he could better capture “the instant of death.” Unsatisfied with this slaughter by bayonet, he drags a corpse onto a banca for a long shot, then starts a cleansing fire so he can take a prize-worthy, dramatic photo.

Even the most Rizal-like character, Simeon, is portrayed realistically, with all too human frailty. For what good are ideals if one is unable to physically fight for them?

Perhaps the most heartbreaking thing about the novel is its end. I thought I would last the entire book without crying, but the ending broke something in me, and proves that Linda Ty-Casper is no romantic idealist. With echoes of Elias and Ibarra, but written more realistically, the author shows who is most worthy of contempt: those who choose to do nothing.

“On either side people stopped to watch, surprised that with the revolution over, someone would still try to be killed in it. Cristobal beseeched his mother’s house for help. All merely looked back, as if it did not matter what happened to one more.”

At the end, Linda Ty-Casper shows that the Revolution is intensely personal, as is salvation for every Filipino/a. Reading this book not only places us squarely in the times, but makes us examine our deepest selves and question what would we have done, had we lived through this darkness?

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Book Review: DEATH'S END by Liu Cixin (Remembrance of Earth's Past # 3)

Death's End by Liu Cixin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“The ultimate fate of all intelligent beings has always been to become as grand as their thoughts.”

Scifi fans everywhere, this is our year. We just had DUNE Part Two in the IMAX theaters, and now we have Netflix’s THREE-BODY PROBLEM based on the incredible Liu Cixin’s trilogy. Somewhere in our youth or childhood, we must have done something good, guys!

My first attempt to read Book 1 of the series (prophetically entitled REMEMBRANCE OF EARTH’S PAST) ended with me sheepishly returning the book to the generous friend who had lent it to me. “I’m not smart enough,” I said. The English translation from the original Mandarin skews to the dry side, and back then, I was deterred by the extremely detailed depiction of the actual physics (with all that talk about Lagrange points and curvature propulsion) involved in attempting to communicate with intelligent civilizations outside our planet.

But then Fate intervened, and after my stint as a substitute Science teacher for a couple of years (read as: after reanimating the mummies known as basic Physics and Chemistry in my brain), and after I found the boxed sale on sale at Fully Booked SM Baguio during the Christmas break, I thought, who am I to question Destiny?

Reading Books 1 and 2 brought the same joy as reading the other classics of the genre. Liu is indeed worthy of being included in the ranks of Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert. Life intervened when I was only a few chapters in Book 3, but then I watched the Netflix adaptation (absolutely fantastic!) and had to know what came next.

Book 1 asks, What do we do when we send a message to the stars, and one answers back? Book 2 responds with, What makes you think there’s only one intelligent civilization out there listening to us?

Book 3 is the longest, at more than 600 pages. It was also the most heart-breaking and shocking, with me startling a lady sitting next to my table at a coffee shop when I muttered a heartfelt curse under my breath at one point (a hazard when one reads in public, boo). That’s how skilfully Liu involves the reader in the interstellar struggle for human survival. This is not a book that one can read in absolute silence.

Having finished all three books and the first season on Netflix, I’m struck by the thought that this is the definitive scifi classic of our generation, capturing our milieu’s exhausted cynicism so accurately, yet without falling into the easy trap of despair. It’s a marvel to me how Liu avoids stereotypes in any of his characters. All are capable of deception and pettiness, and yet, all are heroic and admirable in their own way. I couldn’t tell you who is good or bad, because it depends on the cultural norms of each epoch. This is a series that spans millenia, and goes far beyond our tiny Milky Way Galaxy. Others have done it before Liu Cixin, but none have done it with his level of technical prowess (he was, after all, a computer engineer) and observant eye for what are the best (and worst) things about humans in the 20th and 21st century.

Liu brings such an Asian sensitivity to cultural and social norms as well, the yin and yang of masculine pride and aggression described alongside feminine nurturing and caring, the importance of the group as important as each individual’s quest for meaning. With a scientist’s logic, he explains what happens when laws of physics don’t act the way we’re accustomed to on earth. With a humanist’s eye, he shows us the consequences of the breaking of these laws on fragile humans and our equally fragile societies. And despite the little bit of language that is lost in translation, the result is a powerful third novel that had me literally weeping close to midnight, at its close (sorry, roommate!).

Such books are rare gifts, because they speak to the very essence of what is worth saving in our fallen world. And by its end you’re no longer thinking of the Science (although the foundation is solid and makes for a very realistic experience), but of the moral and philosophical implications of these new frontiers that Liu brings, narrated in a story so breathtakingly exciting, one might as well purchase the entire set so you don’t have to wait to buy the next book.

It is, surprisingly, a fitting read for Holy Week, when we consider the impact of one man on the rest of humanity.


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Book Review: TROLLS FOR SALE by Jonathan Corpus Ong

Trolls for Sale by Jonathan Corpus Ong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It's February 25 in my country and it isn't a holiday.

For as long as I can remember, the 25th has been a big deal. Growing up, it was "EDSA Day." It was the name of a highway, yes, but more importantly, it was the name of a bloodless revolution, the success of democracy and the people over a dictator.

But the Philippines in 1985 is no longer the Philippines of 2024.

To understand why, we need to look at what happened to the number one social media capital of the world.

This short book is a compilation of disinformation researcher Jonathan Ong's works, namely, a summary of a longer report ("Architects of Networked Disinformation" co-authored with Jason Vincent Cabañes), a transcript of a talk in Columbia University along with Sheila Coronel, and the article "Southeast Asia's Disinformation Crisis: Where the State is the Biggest Bad Actor and Regulation is a Bad Word."

It's a short but rage/grief-inducing read, tracing the social media campaign story of 2022 linked with that of 2016.

My key take-aways were the lack of ethics displayed by short-term contractual workers who managed to distance themselves from their devilry by being gainfully employed in legitimate PR firms or call centers during the day. The transference of responsibility in saying that "it's just a job" and "there are others worse than I."

It is this collective relaxation of morals that has led us to our situation today, so far removed from the ideals of 1985.

Removing history from the curriculum isn't helping any. Erasing historic dates from the list of state-recognized holidays adds to the national forgetting.

But only if we let it.

Ambeth Ocampo once said that history repeats itself only because we let it.

Thankfully, there are books like this one, as well as plays written, movies made by brave artists unbeholden to old sponsorship. For as long as there are those of us who read, and write, and remember, there is hope still.

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Book Review: LOVE ON THE SECOND READ

Love on the Second Read by Mica De Leon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love romance books.

There was a time I used to read nothing but romance. I read romance back when it was looked down upon, so my book club friends and I took to wrapping those bodice ripper covers in opaque wrapping paper. (Today, if you dare raise an eyebrow at romance readers, it's YOU who will be given an aggressively questioning glare back. Do this at the risk of being judged as a narrow-minded snob, you elitist Lit major, you.)

The good thing that came out of reading all those romances is the realization that this genre is a grown-up's Disney fix.

It's the bone-deep assurance that it all will work out fine, in the end.

It's acknowledging that joy is a choice, no matter what curveballs and balls of waste Life throws at us. Heck, to read romance is to choose idealism and light and hope, a revolution against this culture of despair and death. And that is no small thing, and worthy of respect indeed.

So I particularly enjoyed LOVE ON THE SECOND READ! Mica de Leon's debut romance is special because it's my favorite kind of book: a well-written, cleverly nerdy one by a Filipina, and set in the Philippines, where characters have real problems (and not first class, white people ones) and have been through the trauma of the pandemic and the pain of losing family along the way (I abhor books that gloss the pandemic over, like it was a minor blip when it was anything but).

It was so good, I read it in one sitting one glorious Saturday afternoon.

I had plans. I was going to go out.

But the first few pages drew me in and so I was compelled to read it while drinking 3-in-1 coffee instead of an overpriced latte from a fancy cafe that only accepts credit cards (these have NO place in Manila! #hugot).

Reading this brought joy, and Pinoy pride as well! Mica de Leon joins that ever-growing list of world-class writers picked up by international publishing companies, and when you read her excellent first book, you'll understand why. She writes with a confidence and ease that is amazing in a debut book.

This is a romance that booklovers will love, the geekier the better. Where else can you find Austen quotes amidst Star Wars and Red Rising references?

Reading this brought back memories of flirtations in bookstores, crushes blossoming over conversation about books you read to get closer to said crush.

I also love reading books with value added, and Mica does this with an amazingly detailed insider look at the world of Philippine book publishing. Our two leads are both editors who take their office rivalry up a notch when they're forced to collaborate on a book that straggles the line between sci fi and romance.

This romance felt extra real to this Filipina, but it is universal, too, in the appeal of clever dialogue, references to global literature, and the twin blessings of good pacing and a clearly drawn plot.

This book is one of the most joyful I've read in a while! Will be on the lookout for her next books!

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Book Review: THE MANIAC by Benjamin Labatut

The MANIAC by Benjamín Labatut
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Lost faith is worse than no faith at all, because it leaves behind a gaping hole, much like the hollow that the Spirit left when it abandoned this accursed world... These god-shaped voids demand to be filled with something as precious as that which was lost. The choice of that something - if indeed it is a choice at all - rules the destiny of men."

Labatut reminds me a bit of Richard Powers, in that they're both capable of writing books that serve as place markers in humanity's story. And if perhaps Labatut's writing does not seem as finely polished, the phrases not as perfect, perhaps it is only to be expected as the Chilean author wrote his second novel in English (unlike his first).

Labatut especially excels in showing the twin terrors wrought by technology: fearsomely fast progress, yes, but the author asks: at what cost?

This would make for a fitting companion read with the Oppenheimer biography AMERICAN PROMETHEUS.

The title may suggest incredibly intelligent supermen who step off the edge of the razor-thin line separating genius and madness, and while the book does do that, it also speaks of a very old but very important computer. The MANIAC (acronym for the Mathematical and Numerical Integrator and Calculator) was smaller than its predecessor, the ENIAC, and made the hydrogen bomb possible.

The bomb that was five hundred times more powerful than the atomic bomb that exploded over Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Those bombs that followed a scientist's rational, inhumane logic when he calculated that they had better be blown up before hitting the ground, for maximum damage inflicted onto innocent civilians whose only crime was being born Japanese.

That mad scientist was John von Neumann, whose story takes most of the pages of the book.

Perhaps the most affecting portion is the last one, which focuses on the game go, and how in 2016, a computer beat the best human player in four out of five games (AlphaGo versus Lee Sedol).

The part where Labatut analyzes the one win, and not the four losses, makes his readers hope in a future where ChatGPT and AI has not yet totally subsumed our world.

We read Labatut to have the threads of events past and present woven in a pattern all can read, and just barely, he affords us a glimpse into the future we're so recklessly diving towards.

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Book Review: OLD GOD'S TIME by Sebastian Barry

Old God's Time by Sebastian Barry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"You saw more clearly what the gift of life could be - something precious given, then snatched back by the mean gods."

My first Sebastian Barry broke my heart.

Honestly I thought it was going to be about appreciating life by the sea in one's well-deserved retirement, and helping out with a police case to liven up the day.

But then the protagonist attempts suicide, and can't help but weep as he walks in the rain.

My God. What must have he survived?

And then he starts speaking to people whom you're not entirely sure are still alive. But you don't know who is dead and who isn't, until the very end.

How skillful an author Barry is, to take a taboo institutionalized societal problem and spin this tale of triumph over tragedy from it.

But be warned. Like I said, this book can break hearts. Whether from the sheer sadness of events unfolding hidden in the privacy of silent rooms, or the musical lilt of Barry's gorgeous prose, this is literature that cuts, and cuts deep.

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