by Gaelle Ansaldo

THE STORY

Tara, roadtrip tayo!
Lakbayin natin ang nakaraan.
Ating ungkatin ang mga nakatagong kuwento at…
mga sikretong matagal mo nang kinalimutan.

Malayo-layo ‘to, marami kang masasakyan:
motor, tricycle, jeep, tren, eroplano, 
tangke de gyera
karo ng patay.

Bakit kamo?
Para makausad na tayong muli sa kasalukuyan.

Get a copy: 8Letters, Bookbed Store / Read reviews: Goodreads

WHAT I LIKED

This is an anthology of stories of various authors, and each story has a different theme. Some spoke of the realities one realizes growing up, and others talk about the emotions they felt realizing the truths they discovered.

I honestly struggled reading in Filipino. I took this book as a challenge to myself to start reading Filipino books, and it really was quite ~the challenge. Regardless, I enjoyed the book. One of my favorites was from Mga Lihim ng Kahapon by Jonalyn Mencias. In it, the author’s parents fought repeatedly, and I remember reading,

“Sa mga panahon na yon, alam kong dasal lang ang makakapagpabago sa mga nangyayari sa aming pamilya.”

And I absolutely felt that.

Meanwhile, I loved how each story was easy to relate to and how each one explored a different aspect of Filipino life growing up. There are common traditions mentioned and I read about how the authors felt about it and I gained a bigger sense of community I wasn’t really aware of.

The pace of the stories was also commendable. It chronologically explained the challenges each author experienced while he or she grew up.

tl;dr

Ekspedisyon: Biyahe sa Nakaraan is a heart-warming anthology of stories that are undeniably relatable. The stories awaken empathy and a sense of belongingness we often don’t speak about as a country. The conflict in the stories reflect the struggles that everyday Filipino families—there’s comfort in knowing that we aren’t alone. ☁