Life is a classroom in ABNKKBSNPLAko?!

In ABNKKBSNPLAko?!, Bob Ong reminisces about his experiences in various classrooms-from the time he learned how to count from 1 to 10, through high school games and to his misadventures in college. He recounts memorable stories of going to class in the midst of the rain, braving floods and mud and even walls and roofs of classrooms collapsing under the fury of the storm.

He successfully recounts the sometimes painful struggle of young students to learn under strict teachers, including the time that he brought a toy to school for their lesson and got spanked for it. He describes the different kinds of students who go to school-from the nerds to the intelligent ones and everything in between.

In relating his experiences from elementary through high school, Bob Ong regales his readers with his wit, humor and occasional sarcasm. It isn't very surprising for a reader to burst out laughing by himself when reading this book. But things turn somber when he tells the story of his college life. He describes what it was like to mess up in college-because of his own mistakes and the influence of his environment. With one word, he summed up his own college life-"Doon ko lang naisip na ganon pala sa college. Gaguhan... Sa second year, bumalik ang eskwelahan sa dati nitong anyo-gubat. Bumalik din ako sa dati kong pagkatao-insekto. [It was then that I realized, that was how it was in college. Being played for fools... In second year, school returned to its original incarnation-a jungle. I also returned to my original identity-an insect.]"

More importantly, he tells how he bounced back and later, became a teacher. By owning up to his own mistakes, confessing to his siblings, and starting again, he managed to overcome his initial failure. As a result, he acquired a new sense of appreciation of the importance of education to a person's life.

Unmistakably, Bob Ong touched a nerve in the contemporary Filipino reader. However, the humor, sarcasm and wit of Bob Ong can easily mask the profound lessons and the subtle criticism of the educational system that the book offers. Those who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s could readily relate to his stories about public schools. Yet they are told in such a way that even the younger generation can easily understand his message.

Be entertained and learn

Ron Suarez of Valenzuela said of ABNKKBSNPLAko?!: "REMARKABLE!!! ...I just want to comment that you made it so good that a lot of people will relate to your stories. Your story reflects. Most of them are usual happenings; but you were able to present it cleverly, brilliantly; put color and life to it to remind us our wonderful past."

Philippine Daily Inquirer's Pam Pastor also praises the book, saying that it "may strike a lot of people as nothing but sheer entertainment" but it would be a false impression. "Ong cleverly sandwiched very important lessons on our educational system and the people in it between hilarious stories. Readers would have no choice but go on reading because they're already having too much fun."

The Estudyante Ako blogger couldn't help but laugh by himself. "Habang binabasa ko ang libro, di iilang beses na natawa ako, para nga akong baliw minsan kasi mag-isa ako tapos tawa ako ng tawa. Alam mo yung parang nagbabasa ka ng diary at ikaw mismo ang bida ng istorya. Parang ganun. Tapos meron din mga eksena na parang maluluha ka kasi di naman lahat ng eksena sa buhay natin masaya. [While I was reading the book, there were not a few instances where I laugh out loud. At time I seemed to be mad, laughing and laughing all by myself. You know those times when it's like you're reading a diary and you yourself are the main character. Then there are also scenes where you would like to cry because not all scenes in our lives are happy scenes.]"

Another blogger, Patweecia, shares that ABNKKBSNPLAko?! has successfully entertained and taught its readers by providing something unusual.

"[T]he author's sarcastic, sometimes almost revolting, tone can make one think that the book is written not simply to entertain or to share life experiences. It is written to inspire, and hopefully, one student will emerge from his seat and try to change the world by asking questions other students are afraid to ask."

Education is a right, as much as it is a duty and an opportunity. ABNKKBSNPLAko?! is a treatise, albeit a funny one, on how a student survives in the Philippine educational system, and in typical Filipino style, falls down, then rises again to live a more meaningful life.

The book cover was taken from the Visprint Enterprises official website . It is believed that use of the image falls under Fair Use.

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