Over the years, the Philippines seems to have lost its lofty standing in the international community, so much so that any stories about the Philippines, save for natural disaster or Manny Pacquiao stories, are written with certain detachment and generality. These days, rarely are there stories that take a deep look into the Philippines, examine its rich, unique culture and at least give understanding its bewildering yet loving people the "old college try." Pacific Rims, written by self-professed basketball junkie Rafe Bartholomew, is one such book.
Arriving in the Philippines on a Fulbright scholarship, Bartholomew embarks on a singular quest to learn about the Philippines' obsessive love for basketball and what he finds is that this obsessive love has embedded itself in almost all of the country's elements.
Play by Play
The book displays Bartholomew's skill as a sports writer, as he recounts both the Alaska Aces' road to the Philippine Basketball Association's import-reinforced conference, and his own tour of duty as a ringer/import for a Boracay-based commercial team. In both counts, he succeeds in getting the reader to heavily root for them by laying the proper groundwork. He generously recounts his time hanging out with the Aces and its players, their insecurities, their struggles and their personal thoughts and dreams, leaving the reader no chance to not be invested. Meanwhile, his tongue-in-cheek recap of his own travails in the heavily partial officiating of the Boracay commercial league is whether by design or not, the perfect microcosm of the proverbial Filipino hard luck story so prevalent in the country's long-running telenovelas. By the time he recounts the respective big games of both teams, the narrative becomes a written version of Marv Albert's iconic play-by-play, leaving the reader breathless with anticipation during the recap and hopelessly spent by its end.
Belly Ache
Pacific Rims also is a showcase of the author's belly-aching humor. Bartholomew's sharp wit bursts through every page and as one reads about how the Aces found him a FIlipino nickname ("Paeng"), his own thoughts about becoming Alaska's emergency import and his bus ride where the bus had its own version of an engine cooling system. Outbursts of laughter are guaranteed as one reads about Willie Miller's exhibitionist tendencies, Senator Dick Gordon's over-exuberant cheering at the Ateneo-La Salle game and Kurt Bachman's insistence on how he taught Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to use the sky hook. The book is littered with gems like these, and one cannot help but laugh even harder when one realizes they are all absolutely true.
On the Money
The book's greatest achievement, though, lies in its tone. Bartholomew calls everything as he saw it. While his love for the Philippines, its people, its sights and sounds and its obsession with basketball, is clearly felt in every sentence, he also pulls no punches. He calls out the absurdity of the Philippine Senate's investigations into alleged "Fil-Shams," he freely expresses his bewilderment and incredulity at the annual "Unano vs Bading" game and the imbalance of power in the PBA. He recognizes the shabby way PBA teams treats its imports and he fairly presents both sides of the Fil-Am debate. When he talks of the incredible injustice of politicians building basketball courts as hundreds remain hungry, one nods in agreement and wonders why Filipino journalists and politicians choose to gloss over this fact that is right in front of their faces. While those are achievements in themselves, Bartholomew's success is that much greater, as he does all this in a tone with no hint of condescension or preachiness. This is when you realize that he is only able to do so because he actually took the time to immerse himself fully into the Philippines, its ballers and their stories. He spent his intended one year stay (that turned into three) riding public transportation, making friends and of course, playing baranggay hoops, making himself as FIlipino as isaw.
I've often lamented that no one has taken the time to truly understand and write about the Philippines, her people and their peculiarities. It took a six-foot three, defensive-minded, New Yorker, who has truly turned FIlipino, to actually do it. Intended or not, Pacific Rims set out to be a book on the Philippines' love for basketball and it has turned into an in-depth, no-holds-barred look at the Philippines, and a celebration of its culture. For this, FIlipinos owe Bartholomew a debt of gratitude. Pacific Rims is a book that every Filipino, basketball fan or not, must read.
photos courtesy of Slam Online, alaskaaces.com.ph and gulfnews.com
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