This review pertains to the Howard Augenbraum translation published by Penguin (2006). I'd been expecting this novel to be mainly of historical interest, but it turned out to be quite enjoyable as well. There's a surprising amount of satire and sarcasm, as well as red-hot indignation, that comes through in this translation. (And a day or two after I finished reading it I saw the Archbishop of the Philippines interviewed on the BBC, which brought home that there's a great deal in the novel that remains topical, too.) Of course you may encounter some slower patches: for me, these were mainly some detailed descriptions of religious festivals. And some plot elements, such as the central romance, may seem rather quaint. But the whole thing compares favourably to a good Sir Walter Scott novel -- with a lot more political spice, to boot.
The Penguin edition includes numerous endnotes to explain many allusions to local foods and customs, Latin tags, etc. (though I think the translator was a little shaky in his French and Latin in a couple of places). My one very tiny criticism is that a glossary would have been a better idea for most of those entries, since some terms in Tagalog and other languages appear often in the text but are defined only in the endnote attached to their first appearance; moreover the endnotes depart from the format used in most other Penguin Classics by not identifying the bit of text to which each note refers, making it difficult to read the endnotes pro- or retrospectively. But all in all, a very diverting read even for a reader like me, who lacks any personal or professional connection to the Philippines; I'll definitely read the sequel.
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The book was meant as a Christmas gift but the condition of the book is very poor. It’s like a second hand item. Cover has folds, scratches and stain. What a waste :(
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