Patron Saints of Nothing

A compelling story about what is happening in the Philippines under Duterte’s rule. I read this novel in one day; I couldn’t put it down. I have never been to the Philippines but have friends from there whose parents have told me some of the most heartbreaking stories ive ever heard. I am so glad there is being light shown on the subject, especially to an YA audience. The author brings the sights, sounds and smells alive. The narrative about loss, and confusion, and love pulls on the heart strings. I found myself crying hysterically from sadness, laughing hysterically and back to crying. Happy years, sad tears, scared tears all at once haha I highly recommend this book to any and everyone. The author is a phenomenal writer that everyone will love reading.

I usually don't read this type of book as I tend to read to escape the realities of the world, but I am glad I did. Patron Saints of Nothing portrayed many issues such as immigration, the drug war in the Philippines, and grief very well. Jay is a first generation immigrant from the Philippines who still has family over there. During Jay's senior year, his cousin is murdered. All is not as it seems due to cultural differences with his family keeping them silent on the matter and so Jay travels to the Philippines to try and get to the bottom of this mystery and find out the real Jun and why he was killed. This story is told very smoothly, despite the deep issues and it makes for a good read that makes you think about a lot of things. I learned a lot from this story and I would recommend this book to others.

Randy Ribay has written such a great story that takes the reader from the American Midwest to Manila to the Manila Slums and finally to the beautiful countryside/mountainside and small villages of the Philippines. And what a natural and insightful journey it was with Jay as a tour guide through a world that is foreign to even him. We learn, as he learns, that life in a foreign land does not exactly reflect life in our own respective countries and that we should look beyond our own domestic issues and understand what is happening in foreign countries to people who are simply humans, just like us. This book was my first from Ribay as well as my first real look into the culture, lifestyle and politics of the Philippines and I couldn't have asked for a better introduction in regards to all of these aspects. Patron Saints of Nothing is a compelling, insightful, diverse and most of all enjoyable read! I would recommend this story to all readers looking for something relatable, teachable, and/or eye-opening. I really enjoyed Ribay's writing style and story-telling in this work, it had me invested from the very beginning. I will be reading this again, as well as After The Shot Drops, An Infinite Number of Parallel Universes and some short stories also written by Ribay