Patron Saints of Nothing

By: Randy Ribay

Narrated by: Ramón de Ocampo

A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST

"Brilliant, honest, and equal parts heartbreaking and soul-healing." (Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Shout)

"A singular voice in the world of literature." (Jason Reynolds, author of Long Way Down)

A powerful coming-of-age story about grief, guilt, and the risks a Filipino-American teenager takes to uncover the truth about his cousin's murder.

Jay Reguero plans to spend the last semester of his senior year playing video games before heading to the University of Michigan in the fall. But when he discovers that his Filipino cousin Jun was murdered as part of President Duterte's war on drugs, and no one in the family wants to talk about what happened, Jay travels to the Philippines to find out the real story.

Hoping to uncover more about Jun and the events that led to his death, Jay is forced to reckon with the many sides of his cousin before he can face the whole horrible truth - and the part he played in it.

As gripping as it is lyrical, Patron Saints of Nothing is a pause-resisting portrayal of the struggle to reconcile faith, family, and immigrant identity.

©2019 Randy Ribay (P)2019 Listening Library

Critic reviews

A National Book Award Finalist

An NPR Best Book of the Year

An NBC News Best Asian American Young Adult Book of the Year

A Paste Best Young Adult Book of the Year

A New York Public Library Top 10 Best Book of the Year

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year

A USA Today Best Book of the Year So Far

A Raleigh News & Observer Best Book of the Year

An Amazon Best Book of the Year

A Junior Library Guild audio selection

National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA) Freeman Book Award Winner

An L.A. Times Book Award Nominee

"Passionately and fearlessly, Ribay delves into matters of justice, grief, and identity." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

"A perfect convergence of authentic voice and an emphasis on inner dialogue." (School Library Journal, starred review)

"Powerful and courageous." (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)

wonderful life lesson

embedded in this story are targeted life lessons that everyone should attempt to live by

Beautiful, moving, exploration of masculinity and Phillippines history / contemporary society

I learned so much about the Philippines - its history and one view of its modern society. I also loved reading a book about a teenage boy coming into his own through emotional intelligence. My biggest critique is that all the female characters are only in service to his growth which still a reinforcement of patriarchy.

Beautiful and Tender.

This book was recommended by a friend of mine who teaches English to high school kids and I think it’s perfect and brilliant. I hope a lot of teens and adults read this book.

A+ performance

The voice performer is SO GOOD. He does the accents of the characters, adding additional authenticity to the story because he is Filipino. So, so, so happy I read this book. The viewpoint as a third culture kid is outstanding.

Teaching

I m diversifying my curriculum for World Lit. This is a favorite to add. My kids would enjoy it.

Wow

This book moved me to tears. Incredibly written and impeccably performed. A fantastic read for anyone looking for a deeply impactful story.

Touching and informative

Really fast read that informs the reader of current events in the Phillipines without being preachy or too one sided. I enjoyed the characters. Jason is a clueless teen, which you can take as realistic or annoying- probably both.

A really good read

Excellent 👌 book. The narrator Ramon de Ocampo was awesome! The author Randy Ribay kept my interest through out the whole story. The main character's search for the truth did not turn out the way he expected, and the reader is also locked in as the main character digs deep to unvail the truth. Ribay's description of the Philippines is rich with details and the character s really come alive in this story. Nothing is ever as it appears 😉

Mabuhay!

Such a well written story! I felt transported to Manila and the different communities it is comprised of. Ramon de Ocampo’s narration was impeccable! His pronunciation and intonation are so authentic!

Good story

This one left me wanting more. Unaddressed topics in the story left some stereo types hanging. As a coming of life story I was hoping for a stronger finish.