I DNFed this book because I couldn't get into it after a few pages. The subject/theme seemed really interesting but the writing style just wasn't something I enjoy.

An excellent, strange book by an important writer. I reviewed it here: https://www.plough.com/en/topics/culture/literature/book-tour-a-translated-being

This book was extremely difficult to follow. As someone not familiar with the history of the Philippines, it was extremely difficult to immediately jump into the story and comprehend what the dueling footnotes were discussing. The story required far too much reading between the lines. Perhaps it would have been better if I knew more about the subject matter so I could be "in on the joke."

Happy to include this much-anticipated new American edition in January's Novel Encounters, my monthly top ten roundup column of notable upcoming fiction titles for Zoomer magazine’s Books section. To read the feature, click on the link.

Raymundo Mata had very little to say in this work. Instead, the story takes place as a discussion between the translator and two academics, considered to be experts in Philippine history, in the guise of footnotes.

The snark and jabs the three throw out at each other range from funny (some hilariously so) to downright mean. This was engaging, up to a point. After a while, it just got old.

The quality of the writing is excellent- it shows Apostol's talent and clever ability to bring in pop culture references (the translator's introduction nods to the Talking Heads) and to create sly digs via the "experts". This certainly highlights how academia takes itself seriously, especially when its relevance may be overblown.

The ARC I received had some issues, as well- it was hard to follow the footnotes properly with the format provided. This will be corrected, I'm sure, upon publication.

All in all, a good read- I very much enjoyed this. I wish it had been a bit shorter.

Thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for the ARC.

I returned it! I didn’t like it! I gave it one star! It didn’t hold my interest and I just didn’t want to continue to read it!