Essays: Looking Back

Written by: Ambeth R. Ocampo

Anvil Publishing

(4.296/5 ★★★★☆)

"Hindsight is the lowest form of intelligence - except for historians. In this handy collection of Ambeth Ocampo's "Looking Back" column pieces, the popular historian digs deep and looks back carefully at events, places and important people who make up the country's history."

The Good:

Ocampo's researches and studies on our Philippine history doesn't go to waste with this collection of essays he has written.

These small pieces of our history might not be the one eligible to be printed on our history textbooks, but they are still worth reading over and over.

He shares his different findings to us, such as the great bolero among our heroes, monai sizes and the gintong granda. His research also covers our language, as to how our knowledge of Spanish is not entirely Spanish but Mexican and the what-if's in the event Germany, Japan or Belgium took over our country after the end of the Spanish colonization.

The Bad:

This is still a collection of essays about history. Even though the author did his best to make each topic interesting, there would still be a few ones that you wouldn't bother to remember after reading it.

The Verdict:

A lot of Ocampo's essays was well written to make us continue reading his works even if the subject matter is all about history.

Looking Back takes us to a different perspective of our time. Wherein, we get to see a different aspect of MacArthur and Manuel Quezon, a new understanding of the word "La mierda" and a deeper appreciation of our heroes, most especially those whom we knew little about like Gregoria Nakpil.

This is recommended to be read to see beyond what Agoncillo has taught us in her textbooks.

* Breakdown of Rating:
★☆☆☆☆ -
★★☆☆☆ -
★★★☆☆ - 1, 4, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22
★★★★☆ - 3, 5, 17, 24, 26
★★★★★ - 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 23, 25, 27