Thank you to Kokila/Penguin Teen for the ARC.

This book was, I realized, the first I’ve ever read with a Filipino protagonist. I try to be pretty cognizant of what I read and make sure it’s diverse as possible, but that fact kind of surprised me.

On to the book itself. The story follows Jason (Jay), a Filipino-American teenager who is feeling pretty lost at the end of his senior year of high school in Michigan. When he hears that his cousin Jun—who is about the same age as Jay—has been killed, Jay decides he needs to go to the Philippines to find out what exactly went wrong. He doesn’t believe his father’s story that he doesn’t know how Jun died.

What follows is a journey of discovery for both Jay and his extended family in the Philippines. He longs to uncover the truth about the last four years of Jun’s life, after he ran away from home, and while he moves from house to house staying with different family members, Jay starts to piece together a story of what really happened to his cousin.

Ribay’s lyrical writing and clear voice make this a speedy and engaging read. I loved that the name of each chapter came from a phrase near the end of that chapter. It made each chapter like a miniature story in itself and, for me, brought the whole thing full circle. It made me consider what I had just read in the chapter, more so than I usually do while reading.

I haven’t yet read anything else by Randy Ribay, but I plant to remedy that soon! I definitely recommend this book to teenagers and adults alike, because it offers a fresh perspective on a country often ignored by Americans.