-FROM: Mr. KD Surely goodreads/book/show/16085863-walang-hagdan-patungong-langit-simula-ng-wakas This was my 3rd PSICOM book. The first two were Rainbow Haven, Loves Cradle (3 stars) and To Share Why I Like My Neighbor Skype and Her Tumbler Named Twitter (2 stars) that I read early this year. These two were both romantic comedy fiction so I thought that two novellas in this book (yes, this is a 2-in-1) also belonged to the same genre. Wrong. Simula ng Wakas, the first novel is sci-fi and religion book while the second, Walang Daan Patungong Langit is a love story with a touch of religion. Rey Atalia, by the way, is the father of Eros Atalia, the popular author of the best-selling books like Taguan-Pung: Koleksyon ng Dagling Kathang Di Pambata at Manwal ng Mga Napapagal: Kopi Teybol Dedbol Buk (2 stars), Peksman (Mamatay Ka Man) Nagsisinungaling Ako (3 stars), Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me (2 stars), Wag Lang Di Makaraos: 100 Dagli (Mga Kwentong Pasaway, Paaway at Pamatay) (3 stars) and Its Not That Complicated: Bakit Hindi pa Sasakupin ng mga Alien ang Daigdig sa 2012 (2 stars). I intentionally listed the titles of Prof. Eros Atalias books and my rating for each because Id like to say this: except for two of his sons work, Rey Atalia is better in terms of storytelling. Maybe I am in the same age group as the father, but I liked his style better than his sons. Why? Rey Atalias works come to me as more sincere and down-to-earth. Besides, as far as I know, Simula ng Wakas is rare in Philippine literature. It is a post-apocalyptic dystopian novel about people living on earth when the ozone layer is totally destroyed and so it is extremely hot that the people and animals are dying of heat stroke (dehydration), skin cancer and sun blisters. Then it has a touch of spirituality (view spoiler) On the other hand, Walang Daan Patungong Langit is about dirt-poor people in the slum who are trying to make ends meet and it reminded me of the short stories of the stories that I really loved in the panitikan ng mga anak pawis (literature of the poor) anthology Mga Agos Sa Disyerto (4 stars). The touch of spirituality is still there because the female lead character is sick and since she is too poor to hope that advances in medical field can extend her life, she turns to religion. (view spoiler) I guess the huge difference of these two novels has proven that Rey Atalia has a broader scope in terms of storytelling and creativity. Also, since he is probably more religious or spiritual than his son, he injects these not-really-popular ingredients in his work. So, not minding whether these works of him will make money or not, he chose to defend his work and convinced the PSICOM to publish it. In one of his sons works, he mentioned that his father was a charismatic born-again Christian. In this two-novella book, it seems that the religion is that of Iglesia ni Cristo but of course, I can be wrong. But standing up to ones faith is something I admire on people. Overall, I liked this book. I am glad to know that the father is better than the son. It reaffirmed my belief that more experiences in life the author has, the richer his non-fiction works tend to become. Age means more experience, more pain, more successes, more emotions. Nothing beats sincerity when it comes to writing.
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 23:34:18 +0000
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