Ong makes a point of showing that the protagonists resort to criminality out of necessity and desperation. MacArthur breathes humanity into these words with lives, personalities, dreams, and flaws. Ong presents protagonists who are what many consider to be some of Philippine society's most persistent ills: drug addicts and thieves.

The Blair Book Project A heartbreaking Filipino tragedy centered around the ever-significant themes of poverty, drug addiction, criminality, and corruption. The last part of the book may’ve not sufficed to eliminate the tears in my eyes while reading this and the fact that I wished to change what happened, but it was uplifting to know that even with all the life-shattering experiences, there’s always hope for us and it’s never too late to change for the better.įor more of my reviews, please visit my blog: And in the end, I knew why the title was as it is. I couldn’t help but empathize with how the lives of the characters turned out. This is the first of Bob Ong’s books that, despite the funny capers, I grew sad over reading it. MacArthur rubs in the issue of poverty, graft and corruption, theft and drug addiction.

Why you may ask? Because it’s deeply sad and yet heartwarming.Īt first, I was questioning, “Why is the title ‘MacArthur’?” What does he have to do with the book? But I knew I had to be patient when it comes to Ong’s book, because surely, there’ll be a surprise in the end.Īnd I was right to have thought so. This is my ultimate favorite among Bob Ong’s books.

Macarthur bob ong read online