smaller and smaller circles I. Book data: Title of the book : Smaller and smaller circles By: F. H. Bantacan Publisher: University of the Philippines Press Date published: 2002 Number of pages: 198 pages II. Genealogy Lead by Father Gus Saenz , with the help of his former student and fellow forens ic anthropologist Father Jerome Lucero, they track down and try to decipher the mind of a serial killer, Alex Carlos whom Atty.Benjamin Arcinas the head of the NBI investigating team that doesn’t believe that serial killer exists. III. Description of the characters: Father Gus Saenz represents the tall,mestizo,and ruggedly handsome priest you ho pe would not be in front of an altar in your wedding, but beside you instead. He is a product of an affluent, amiable family, iswell-educated, and witty. Father Jerome Lucero is Father Gus’ former student, a forensic anthropologist, and his partner in solving the series of killings. He is much younger, but less lik ely to withhold his feelings when agitated or irritated. Posing as a hindrance, the acting director of the police department is somehow a satire of the attention-seeking, media-loving police figure. He not only takes the case carelessly, but leads the people in the wrong direction just to make hi mself look good and seem in control of the case.Atty. Benjamin Arcinas. Alex Carlosis the resident dentist-slash-serial killer in this fast-paced novel. He works in the mobile clinic that provides dental and medical check-ups in the Payatas area. It is there that he is given access to the undersized and underno urished boys he needs to fulfill his sick plan. His anger comes from being moles ted as a child by his PE teacher Mr. Gorospe. Unable to talk to his parents abou t the humiliating incident, and incapable of talking to any friends about his tr auma, he grows up psychologically impaired and angry. Summary of the novel The Big Circle: The story opens to Father Emil—a fellow priest and acquaintance to Father Gus and Father Jerome—finding a dead boy’s body dumped in the Payatas. A series of investiga tion has started, and over six bodies are already found suspiciously patterned t o one another.Although, Father Gus and Father Jerome are eager and most likely s ure about the crime being done by a serial killer, the lawyer who heads the NBI’s investigating team Atty. Benjamin Arcinas never believed in their theories. The two priests pursued the investigations of the crimes. Double checking all th e evidence left by the killer on the corpses especially the facts that he kills with precision and with symbols—he defaces his victims, and excises the genitals, signs that there is a sexual conflict and a need to rid off the identity of the kids.
Figuring out the goings-on of a psychologically disturbed killer, especially if he’s very good at hiding it, is fairly difficult. The sleuths go through some comp licated twists in their quest to find truth and justice amidst the media-hungry personalities who don’t give much attention to the case. Deciphering the crime isn’t easy…. they conducted investigations among the people of Payatas and also within the volunteer medical group members assigned there. The y suspect that the killer is one of the men attending to the people’s health. They ended up researching the records of one of the dentists—Alex Carlos. They found o ut that Alex was molested by his homo PE. Teacher when he was still in elementar y school at Payatas. And as a way of bringing out his revenge he kills boys at h is age during the abuse. Father Gus together with the troop conducted an arrest. They cornered him inside the medical van. Father Gus got inside the van alone a nd he tried to convince Alex to surrender but before he could speak the killer h ad injured him using a medical blade many times. He dropped dead outside the van . When Father Gus dropped dead outside the van the troop immediately came forward for rescue and when they saw Alex still holding the blade they shot him. Alex di ed. And Father Gus managed to escape death after the fatal injury. The two pries ts proved their theory and the crime was solved. Reaction to the novel: The novel is really great,at first I wasn’t really interested in it because of my first impression on the title but then, when I read the summary at the back I fo und my self reading it even before I could let the teacher check for it. F.H. Bantacan’s way of writing is really good. It drags you deeper and deeper, as if as you continue reading you were already in the scene and yet nobody sees or notices your existence but you know what is happening, you can see everything an d you can hear everything, whisper or thoughts, that are being left. Naturalisti c dialogue that’s also contributed to the essence of the story, it made it like a true to life story.And last, but not the least, is how the published it—the book i s handy so it’s more comfortable to read anywhere, anytime. The novel was a thrilling detective story. From reading the novel I got to the idea that, the antagonist seeks for justice like most of Filipinos (especially those who are under the poverty line). The po lice force only pays attention to those cases that will bring them media exposur es, I believe this really happens to the kind of society we have now. Justice me n should at least look to every case equally. As a student I’m also an observer of the happenings in our country and I admit the re have been many cases that I watched over the television that had been solved but it is also true that most of them are cases that involve high profile person s. The story opened my eyes to this kind of harassment that maybe a lot of peopl e have been experiencing and yet they can’t talk about it to anybody so they tend to let it out trough killing/ violence. This novel changes my view of priest fro m stereotype to more exciting and analytic life of priest. I love reading books but previously I read only those that is written by foreign writers but after re ading this novel I appreciate it a lot that I am convinced to read more and more Filipino books. My understanding towards people grew deeper and wider. I learne d lot of things. The Filipino values that were depicted in this novel were the t ight family ties- they continuously search for their love ones even though there’s a high possibility that they were dead already, warm family and loving- picture d in the family of Father Gus. XII. Bibliography of the author:
F.H.Bantacan has a degree in broadcast communications and a master’s degree in Art studies, both from the University of the Philippines in Diliman. She worked asa policy researcher, broadcast journalist, web designer and musician, and is curr ently a business copy editor for theThe straits times in Singapore.She previousl y won a prize for her short story “Door 59” in the 1997 Palanca Awards, and her work has appeared in local magazines, as well as in online literary magazineWeb DelS ol. Book Review: Smaller and Smaller Circles by F.H. Batacan The novel Smaller and Smaller Circles by F.H. Batacan is a story about two Jesui t priests, who are also detectives, in pursuit of a serial killer who targets un dersized and undernourished boys from the Payatas area. More than that, it’s an attempt to create an environment that is lacking in this c ountry. There is not a killer as smart as Alex Carlos, police detectives as tale nted as Father Gus Saenz and Father Jerome Lucero, nor a police workforce as ded icated as in the story’s NBI. The novel also magnifies the urban underbelly, with the garbage dumps, the slums, and the way people live in Payatas as seen in the opening chapter. The Boys: Lead by Father Gus Saenz, with the help of his former student and fellow forensi c anthropologist Father Jerome Lucero, they track down and try to decipher the m ind of a serial killer, who the police department doesn’t believe to be present in the country . Father Gus Saenz represents the tall, mestizo, and ruggedly handsome priest you hope would not be in front of an altar in your wedding, but beside you instead. He is a product of an affluent, amiable family, is well-educated, and witty. Father Jerome Lucero is Father Gus’ former student, a forensic anthropologist, and his partner in solving the series of killings. He is much younger, but less lik ely to withhold his feelings when agitated or irritated. As partners, the two priests-slash-sleuths try to figure out the goings-on in th e serial killer’s mind, how and why he kills the way he does. They delve into the psychological aspect of the case, and they are drawn nearer to the killer by the clues gathered. Posing as a hindrance, the acting director of the police department is somehow a satire of the attention-seeking, media-loving police figure. He not only takes the case carelessly, but leads the people in the wrong direction just to make hi mself look good and seem in control of the case. The Rat: Alex Carlos is the resident dentist-slash-serial killer in this fast-paced novel . He works in the mobile clinic that provides dental and medical check-ups in th e Payatas area. It is there that he is given access to the undersized and undern ourished boys he needs to fulfill his sick plan. His anger comes from being mole sted as a child by his PE teacher Mr. Gorospe. Unable to talk to his parents abo ut the humiliating incident, and incapable of talking to any friends about his t rauma, he grows up psychologically impaired and angry. He kills with cunning precision and every act is symbolic. He defaces his victim s, and excises the genitals, signs that there is a sexual conflict and a need to rid off the identity of the kids, much like what happened to Alex Carlos himsel
f. The Big Circle: The story opens to Father Emil—a fellow priest and acquaintance to Father Gus and Father Jerome—finding a dead boy’s body dumped in the Payatas. A series of investiga tion has started, and over six bodies are already found suspiciously patterned t o one another. Although Father Gus and Father Jerome are eager and most likely sure about the c rime being done by a serial killer, the lawyer who heads the NBI’s investigating t eam Atty. Benjamin Arcinas is only focused on looking good before the cameras wh en he is interviewed about the development of the case. He prioritizes other cas es that people can talk about, so he can gain media exposure. Figuring out the goings-on of a psychologically disturbed killer, especially if he’s very good at hiding it, is fairly difficult. The sleuths go through some comp licated twists in their quest to find truth and justice amidst the media-hungry personalities who don’t give much attention to the case. Unlike most of the major cases that happen in the Philippines, the case is treat ed with priority and care by Father Gus and Father Jerome, so it is solved in th e end. Compared to the real investigations happening in the country, the investi gation in the novel is more in-depth, and surprisingly, the detectives have the necessary supplies and equipment needed for the development of the case. And the y’re so smart, educated abroad and come from affluent families. The realist aspect of the novel is when the scene shifts to the life in the Paya tas. One can almost smell the stink from the garbage, can almost feel the starva tion of the kids, can sympathize with the victims’ mothers. This is one of the mov ing scenes in the novels, when they report to the mother of the boys that their sons have been, indeed, murdered, after being reported as only missing. The novel also shows how the police workforce concentrates on preferred cases. M ost of them just take up the more popular cases, or those that would certainly g ain them much media exposure, leaving sometimes the more important and more urge nt cases. The Smaller Circle: At the height of Father Gus and Father Jerome’s pursuit of the serial killer Alex Carlos, a small detail is noticed. At the earlier part of the novel, one would n ot mistake them for priests, lest they are dressed when conducting mass. Yes, th ey are good guys, but in all the suspense and the battle of good versus evil, th ey did not pray outwardly. There was no mention of Father Gus praying while they discover bodies of little kids with their faces stripped off, or when another victim is identified. Father Gus only prays outwardly when he is finally walking towards the van where the k iller is hiding. He calls on to God, for the first time in the novel, and prays. This is a curious part in the novel, but it doesn’t affect much the gripping twist s that surround the world of the two priests. If anything, they get to show the exciting side of priesthood, not the dull, world in which we usually see them in . Smaller and Smaller Circles: The novel provides the readers not only an exciting narration; it also gives the readers a look in the mind of the killer itself. At the start of most of the ch
apters in the novel, monologues of the killer or more possibly his thoughts are presented. This is the best part of the novel, as the reader gets to see both si des of the story. Here is an example of the thought/monologue of the killer: I can feel them. Scurrying in circles around me, smaller and smaller circles lik e rats around a crust of bread or a piece of cheese. Waiting, waiting, waiting f or the right moment. The moment when I slip up, when I make a mistake, when I ge t careless. I can hear their feet. Some of them pass by the gate on the sidewalks; they thin k I can’t see them. Some of them are brave enough to rattle the gate; they bring m y mail, my bills, they ask fro donations. Some of them get into the house while I’m sleeping, and I wake up and I hear their feet on the stairs, yes I do. I can hear their thoughts. The tall man, he knows. He’s not far, he tells the othe rs. He will screw up and we will find him.
