Best british & irish literature according to redditors
We found 155 Reddit comments discussing the best british & irish literature. We ranked the 78 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 155 Reddit comments discussing the best british & irish literature. We ranked the 78 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
There's a book series I read, the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaranovich and the lead character, DC Grant, is a black copper. (Also, slightly a wizard).
And there's a thing that happens in them, which is that often when Grant meets someone he'll say if they're white or not. So I'll be reading merrily along and run into a line like
> She was a white, middle-aged woman who looked like she was already losing her patience
And for a while that was really jarring.
I'd literally stop reading to think "Why the fuck would you bother to mention that she's white?"
...And after a while, I realised that Grant mentions that she's white because he's a black guy. It makes sense he'd notice that sort of thing, when I personally wouldn't bother to describe a white woman as white - I tend to see people as white by default to the extent I'd forgotten that DC Grant was a black character with a different worldview to mine. That was a pretty valuable discovery for me, if I'm honest, because at least now I know I'm prone to think like that.
And I suspect that something similar might be happening when people listen to the descriptions of inclusive characters in TAZ.
It's very easy (assuming that you're more or less straight, white and cisgendered) to kind of forget that some people aren't the same as you. Not in a malicious way (or at least not necessarily in a malicious way), but if you happen to inhabit the same cultural space as most portrayals of "what people are like", being reminded that a character is outside those parameters can feel jarring.
It's a good jarring, if you ask me - it makes as much sense to say "But why is Merle a dwarf though?" as it is to complain that so-and-so isn't cisgendered, but people are conditioned to expect dwarves in the context of a fantasy narrative, and they're not (so) conditioned to expect LGBTQ or ethnic variations to be represented in a fantasy narrative or in the media generally.
Honestly the way the McElroys do it, as an aspect of a character rather than the central focus, is probably the best way to fix that lack of representation. I don't think people find it jarring out of malice, just because they're not used to it - but having that representation is how people get used to it. And for those demographics that are traditionally underrepresented, getting to that point is huge.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (better yet: The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide, with the four following novels)
What did that picture have to do with your question?
But, to answer your question (if I didn't already have a fully packed bag), if I had a minute or two before I had to flee I'd grab my backpack and pack it with (and my answer will not include things already packed in my BOB, just regular normal stuff here in my apartment)...
Peanut butter
Tuna fish
Can opener
Tylenol
Caffeine pills
Ephedrine
Contact case, contact juice, all my extra contacts
the glasses they issued me in boot camp
2 pairs of socks
2 pairs of underwear
1 pair of the pants they issued me in boot camp (mine are slightly different than the one in this link. No drawstring, they have the typical zipper and button like normal jeans and typical front pockets found on jeans)
my Dad's old Navy cold weather jacket he was issued in the 70's. (Very similar to this but without the hood. I'd secure it to my backpack with the straps on the bottom made for a tent or sleeping bag.)
Leather belt
the knife they issued me at my first duty station
the largest Nalgene-style water bottle I own, filled with water
Several bottles of water
Flashlight, extra batteries
Ear plugs
The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide
Pocket magnetic chess set
I have a large and light weight hiking backpack, I've fit a cube shaped 36-pack of beer in it with room for more. And of course, I'd walk out the front door with my two melee weapons in hand: a homemade mace/baton and short sword.
The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway.
One of those rare books that is fast-paced and hugely entertaining the whole way through, while never sacrificing intelligence or thematic depth.
Kung fu, war, secret weapons, post-apocalypse landscapes, lifelong friendships, corporate conspiracies, and ninjas all smash together in a book about the power of relationships in shaping who we are.
Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:
Link: The Devil's Dictionary
|Country|Link|
|:-----------|:------------|
|UK|amazon.co.uk|
|Spain|amazon.es|
|France|amazon.fr|
|Germany|amazon.de|
|Japan|amazon.co.jp|
|Canada|amazon.ca|
|Italy|amazon.it|
|China|amazon.cn|
This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting).
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00J40FGYW/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511470277&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=the+thief+taker#productDescription_secondary_view_div_1511470303632
👍
Private Dancer
Bangkok Days
Dead Drunk: Saving myself from alcoholism in a Thai monastery
The Damage Done: Twelve Years of Hell in a Bangkok Prison
May I recommend a book called Rivers Of London (Midnight Riot in the USA). Lots of fun, each river has their own personification.
If you like this you should check out The Devil's Dictionary.
They deliver to the US
If anyone wants to start reading The Witcher novels I made a guide over on the "Featured Character" comment section that I'll repost here:
Short stories:
Novels:
Overall:
The short stories are a must-read before the novels because they introduce many characters and plot points for the main saga. There is also a prequel story called Season of Storms which hasn't been officially translated into English yet, but there are fan translations if you can't wait. I haven't read it myself, but I hear that it is best read after the others. If you want to know more about The Witcher lore there is always The World of the Witcher^UK which will give you more backstory and details.
I finished this book this week and I'm going to recommend it:
https://www.amazon.com/Gone-Away-World-Vintage-Contemporaries/dp/0307389073
>"Reading The Gone-Away World is a bit like spending a week with a hyperactive puppy: there are delightful moments aplenty, but it's slightly wearing over the long run. Still, any author who has come up with the beautifully silly plan of melding a kung-fu epic with an Iraq-war satire and a Mad Max adventure has to be worth keeping an eye on."
It's very much "The Zone", it involves a superweapon that can erase information from energy and matter. The government deploys it without realizing that it creates fallout in the form of "stuff" energy and matter that reforms based on the contents of the minds it comes into contact with.
So for example, a army unit gets ambushed by the idea of an ambush, bullets flying out of nowhere, everything seeming too cinematic because the hallucination is based on their perception of war rather than the reality. But still deadly.
So the whole world gets eaten by "stuff" and there's one big company left producing "anti-stuff" and the world cowers beneath its skirts. It gets political but I don't want to spoilers.
Really can't say enough about how it was written, either. The first third was slower and didn't hook me as much as the rest of it, but once I got out of that section I couldn't put it down. I'm picking up another novel by him to add to my list because I so thoroughly enjoyed this one.
Maybe I should just start doing fiction review posts, instead of finding places to hide these
Out of all of the books I have ever read, I think about only one book more than I do Hitchhiker's. That book is the Art of War.
THIS is the version I have, and highly recommend it.
Rivers of London by Ben Aaranovitch! The lead is a Met Police officer who becomes involved in the supernatural wing of the force. It's set in contemporary London and the atmosphere and London scenes are incredibly vivid.
I have yet to read And Another Thing..., but I have heard that it is both good and different. I would say get more opinions on it before reading Mostly Harmless. Moreover, if you do decide to go on with the series and want something that looks good on your shelf, I would recommend The Ultimate Hitchiker's Guide. It is the first five and some short stories, which are also good. Moreover, it is a very nice looking book. Then have And Another Thing... as a separate book beside it, as it should be being from a different author.
If I remember after I get around to reading And Another Thing..., I'll come back and update this.
The Gone Away World is super fun, and a great big trip. Plus, the action scenes are mind blowing.
Good gravy, please read this ASAP. The Hitchhikers series is phenomenal. I have read the entire series multiple times, and it's great every time. Funny, insanely smart, sarcastic, just great. Douglas Adams was an incredibly smart guy (regularly lectured on technology, etc) and it really comes through in the books.
Seriously. Get this now. I have this bad boy and it's one of my most prized possessions.
http://i.imgur.com/dOpD5.jpg
http://www.amazon.com/Highway-Eternity-Clifford-D-Simak/dp/0749300388/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333882692&sr=8-1
Is this the book you were thinking of?
I will edit this comment tonight to contain a link!
Edit; https://www.amazon.de/Last-Wish-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0575082445/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?hvadid=379350559415&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9064006&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=b&hvrand=790025916265452916&hvtargid=kwd-300929200721&keywords=witcher+book&qid=1570478376&sr=8-2
Well in that case you definitely need to read the Discworld series, has a lot of the same sort of humour. I'd reccomend starting with Guards! Guards!, it's the first book in the City Watch arc. Here's a guide to how to read the Discworld books, it's a bit chaotic I know but it's well worth it.
Whilst it's a lot less comedy I'd also reccomend the Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch.
Here you go.
There's an entire (good) sci-fi novel based in part on this idea of "the space between" in computer games - http://www.amazon.com/Spares-Michael-Marshall-Smith/dp/0553579010
If you like this stuff you will probably love it - it's a good novel in it's own right, too.
Well damn I'm here for this contemporary Watchmaker of Filigree Street concept.
Blind Faith by Ben Elton.. It's so witty and clever, I love the concept too :D Here it is on amazon :)
Ben Elton's novels have an uncanny way of getting things right. Dead Famous deals with would-be celebrities' desperation and what they will do for fame, which is why I am citing it in this thread, while Blind Faith bears more than a passing resemblance to the potential Dystopian results of adhesion to political correctness and Past Mortem looks uncannily like the activities of Jimmy Saville would have come as no surprise to him.
Ben Elton's Blind Faith is quite a good read
Yarrr, ye can read a book called 'Flashman on the March'. These here shineys are a central plot device, Flashman has ter get 50,000 of them across Ethiopia, an' shags an blunders 'is way across the country like a true English gentleman.
The book that I had contained all of the books in the series bound together. Similar to this
http://www.amazon.com/The-Ultimate-Hitchhikers-Guide-Complete/dp/0517226952
Other books we discussed were books that Redditors had recently read or were planning to read:
The Snow Child
Purple Hibiscus
For We Are Many and All These Worlds Volumes 2 and 3 of the Bobiverse (and it wasn't me who mentioned it, smartass).
October
Silver Sparrow
Hidden Figures
The Glass Castle: A Memoir
And Danger-Moose mentioned The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, and he had completed The Gone-Away World, which a lot of us were not able to do.
Jbcoll04 suggested Homegoing: A Novel by Yaa Gyasi a couple of posts ago, and I don't want to lose track of that, because both me and darr76 want to read that at some point.
So, be thinking about our next choice. I'm definitely going to read October, Homegoing, and I'll try Volume 2 of the Bobboverse.
The full set on Amazon, including SoS.
Amazon also sells them separately, what you have to do is click the link that says "See all formats and editions" on the individual book's page, then browse the editions under "Paperback". Here's The Last Wish.
Give "The Last Wish" a go, if the first couple of short stories about the White Wolf don't grab you, so be it and have a good day sir :) but it might just make a reader of you yet ;)
Going for peanuts on Amazon
If I bought the books again I'd definitely go for the classiest option. It ain't cheap, though.
Have you tried any of Tom Holt's books? I think they might suit if you like Gaiman. I suggest the Portable Door and Little People as good places to start.
The book I am pulling these excerpts out of is "The Gone Away World" by Nick Harkaway.
It is the funniest, saddest, most entertaining, mind-warping tale of brotherhood, coming of age, romance, war, ninjas, and survival I have ever read. It has painted my ideals of politics, ethics, morality, philosophy, and writing that I still strive to come ever closer to each day.
Please dive into this book with nothing else (I've only spoiled some of the funnier quotes, thankfully not the plot nor any of the other insanely comical characters). I promise you, it will blow you away.
Yes, ordered them from here on the 7th if you live in the UK. If you live somewhere else they might be different dimensions.
Sword of Destiny
Lady of the Lake
Blood of Elves
The Last Wish
Tower of Swallow
Baptism of Fire
Time of Contempt
Not what you're thinking I think, but I'm reading Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch right now. Really fun and the detail about London is fantastic. Nothing new but he paints a vivid picture.
I thought that movie was disgusting. Who needs to see a four-year-old and a three-year-old hooking up?
^But ^it ^was ^also ^disgusting ^because ^it's ^a ^rip-off ^of ^Spares ^by ^Michael ^Marshall ^Smith^.
Kind of sounds like Highway of Eternity but the characters weren't kids...and the main character is a man. (he can "walk around 'corners'" into another dimension)
dude, don't even talk to me about dropping much more on liquids than you should. You should read my review series... i've got so fuckin many bottles. here's the link to the latest one, links to the others at the top of the page. I've got 36 bottles from Gremlin to review and about 18 from rasta vapors that just came in. Prolly do AiV, greenmanjuice and a few others as soon as I can get through what I have left.
Best gift I ever got anyone in my life, i got it for one of my best friends: http://www.amazon.com/The-Ultimate-Hitchhikers-Guide-Complete/dp/0517226952/ref=pd_sim_b_1
leatherbound with a silk page holder. I don't really like tobacco flavors, but I trust the chef and I love HHGTTG, so I ordered beeblebrox, slartibartfast and deep thought samples. I'll be writing a review of them shortly, along with all the other flavors I didn't try from the chef last time.
Here ya go!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0517226952?ie=UTF8&at=&force-full-site=1&ref_=aw_bottom_links
The Portable Door by Tom Holt is great. British humor with a fantasy element. And goblins. Lots of goblins.
You're probably thinking of the UK versions, the only thing is that P&P might cost a bit.
Edit: All of the Witcher books, apart from lady of the lake and season of storms, are available with the better covers
Edit 2 (All books): https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0575082445/ref=s9_simh_gw_g14_i7_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=VQ4X0QZWHXKCZ7D040C4&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=16f14aeb-bd11-4e9e-8c26-9ca0139074ee&pf_rd_i=desktop
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1473211549/ref=pd_sim_14_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M4XTC8VMRK55E0NP173A
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0575084847/ref=pd_sim_14_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M4XTC8VMRK55E0NP173A
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0575090944/ref=s9_simh_gw_g14_i5_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=VQ4X0QZWHXKCZ7D040C4&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=16f14aeb-bd11-4e9e-8c26-9ca0139074ee&pf_rd_i=desktop
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0575090979/ref=s9_simh_gw_g14_i4_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=VQ4X0QZWHXKCZ7D040C4&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=16f14aeb-bd11-4e9e-8c26-9ca0139074ee&pf_rd_i=desktop
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1473211565/ref=pd_sim_14_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M4XTC8VMRK55E0NP173A
You can get the European print paperbacks. They have darker coloured and considerably less flashy covers than the US ones. Finding them locally might be a bit of a pain if you're in Canada or the US, but if the covers are a major enough point of contention for you, they can be bough off Amazon UK.
It's a Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy themed case. If you haven't read the books, I really wish that I were you so that I could read them again for the first time.
Dont ask... Just go get it!
Armageddon the musical
http://www.amazon.com/Armageddon-Musical-Robert-Rankin/dp/0552136816
The Deluxe Version is awesome
And the BBC Radio series is not too shabby either.
http://www.amazon.com/Private-Dancer-Stephen-Leather/dp/9810539169/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278466794&sr=8-2
read this on the flight over...
those are awesome. They come in paperback and hardcover too, but I love the leather bound ones because they look almost like bibles.
"My Uncle Oswald" is an excellent Roald Dahl book, quite different to a lot of his other writings. I highly recommend it.
http://www.amazon.com/My-Uncle-Oswald-Roald-Dahl/dp/0140055770/
Have you ever read this story?
This is the best, in my opinion
I'd pick it up used off Amazon if I were you
Au fait, pour motiver ton mari, fais lui lire "A year in the Merde" et demande lui s'il veut être "Jake the American" dans le roman.
Depends which Publisher you are talking about...Orbit is guilty of this, Gollancz did a great job with their covers putting only the characters which had more presence in those stories.
Hey and welcome and although I'm almost sure someone has already told you, you should read "A year in the Merde" although after 6 years it might already be too late =)
reminds me of this book.
Sounds like Happiness by Canadian author Will Ferguson. Great book!
The Watchmaker of Filigree Street
https://www.amazon.com/Watchmaker-Filigree-Street-Natasha-Pulley/dp/1620408341
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch. A light and bouncy entertaining urban fantasy that has a great first-person protagonist.
This might be what you're looking for: http://www.amazon.com/The-Ultimate-Hitchhikers-Guide-Complete/dp/0517226952/
I believe that's the version I have on my shelf at home.
The Gone-Away World, by Nick Harkoway It's probably difficult to accept, but I'd strongly encourage you not to read anything about it and just buy it and read it. Ignore the horrible cover on the book itself. It's fantastic. If you must know something about it, I'd say there's some Vonnegutesque writing, some Kung-Fu, some war. Some mimes. I've said plenty...
UK book covers look a bit nicer IMO
Ok, so your response was a little confusing, but after a bit of homework, it's become more clear: Danusia is the translator for my copy as well, and that's fine - I'm only a few pages in, it may very well get better later on. She was responsible for TLW and Blood of Elves. But apparently after the first two, she stepped down and Mr. French took her place for Time of Contempt and Baptism of Fire, along with presumably any future translations.
It sounds like you've been enjoying the full series quite a bit, regardless of translator. What is your opinion of French's work, and does it detract at all compared to Stok?
Well, I don't know about wrap up covers, but the UK version of the books are pretty decent. You can find them on Amazon as well: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Wish-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0575082445
Stephen Fry wrote an alternate History novel about someone smarter and more strategic being leader due to present day scientists sending a pill back in time to make all men infertile the night Adolf would've been conceived.
Making History by Stephen Fry
Making History - Stephen Fry
http://www.amazon.com/Making-History-Stephen-Fry/dp/1569471509
Amazon?
https://www.amazon.com/Gone-Away-World-Vintage-Contemporaries/dp/0307389073
"The Gone-Away World" by Nick Harkaway is essentially based on the premise of the title of this post.
I would do it on a particular printing of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
if you do get interested even a little their is a short stories collection. so no need to invest in an entire series of novels https://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Wish-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0575082445
The book: http://www.amazon.com/My-Uncle-Oswald-Roald-Dahl/dp/0140055770
Sure, I generally listen to fantasy style books so it might not be to everyone's taste. If so try /r/fantasy for some great threads of lists of audio books if your interested.
I listen to Terry Pratchett books (plenty of info on where to start with these on the web but I always recommend the guards books ) when I'm walking or jogging because when I start laughing it doesn't mess me up as much. Sometimes Ill slip in an "Iron Druid Chronicles" book by Kevin Hearne these are still light enough to let you enjoy your surroundings and are great for outdoors stuff because there is lots of nature waffle :D
for running I try to stick with something that draws me in like the Dresden files by Jim Butcher. or anything by Brandon Sanderson his stuff tends to jump character perspectives from one chapter to another so you find you run through a chapter to get back to find out what happens. Well I do anyway.
I listen to a large spectrum of stuff really but my core library is Fantasy so here is a list I prepared for a friend earlier in the year Hope it helps:
Books List
but mainly “Under Heaven”(Asian theme beautiful book), “River of stars” (semi sequel like a thousand years later) “The Lions of Al Rasan”. Most of his books are connected and there is this thing called the “Fionavar Tapestry” that connects them. His books can also be considered stand alone.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Under-Heaven-Guy-Gavriel-Kay/dp/0007342101/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421678636&sr=1-1&keywords=under+heaven+guy+gavriel+kay
http://www.amazon.co.uk/River-Stars-Guy-Gavriel-Kay/dp/0007521936/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lions-Al-Rassan-Guy-Gavriel-Kay/dp/0007342063/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421678693&sr=1-5&keywords=guy+gavriel+kay
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tigana-Guy-Gavriel-Kay/dp/0007342047/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421678693&sr=1-4&keywords=guy+gavriel+kay
Best use of gunpowder and magic I’ve ever seen it works really well kinda like a “Mistborn” magic system. (If you haven't read mistborn you might want to its another Brandon Sanderson series) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Promise-Blood-Book-Powder-trilogy/dp/0356502007/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1421677263&sr=8-3&keywords=powder+mage
Really cool Magic system that revolves around swallowing Metals and “burning” them for access to their powers.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Final-Empire-Mistborn-Book-One/dp/0575089911/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421677588&sr=8-1&keywords=mistborn
Classic young lad raised by crazy monk types turns into renegade general / gladiator type trope but with an interesting magic system that guides him.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blood-Song-Book-Ravens-Shadow/dp/0356502481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421677442&sr=8-1&keywords=bloodsong
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rivers-London-1-Ben-Aaronovitch/dp/0575097582/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421677738&sr=8-1&keywords=rivers+of+london
Metropolitan police have a secret devision that deels with spooky stuff that stems from the time of Isaac Newton. Has some interesting inner city London stuff with Newtonian magic and river gods and avatars of stuff.
Humans are a primitive people living in small isolated towns and require wards painted on their houses to keep them safe from demons that rampage each night. This young lad is then forced to survive in the wild one night and decides he would rather fight than cower in fear. HE then seeks out a fabled tribe of demon fighting warriors and wants to join up with em etc. Pretty good a little dark at times.
Slow building but a great series that everyone ends up recommending. Dresden is a modern day Wizard / Private Investigator. Carries a revolver and a staff etc battles the dark forces of the world and starts a few wars with spooky gangs as you do.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Storm-Front-Dresden-Files-Book/dp/0356500276/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421678098&sr=1-1&keywords=dresden+files
Bit of a guilty pleasure this one I love ancient mythology and modern day wise assery so this hits the perfect combo of no higher brain function required tuning out on the bus good natured talking dog companion nonsense. plus there are like 9 of em
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hounded-Druid-Chronicles-Kevin-Hearne/dp/0356501191/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421678198&sr=1-1&keywords=iron+druid+book+1
As the Buddah says, disappointment is caused by expectations.
And hatred is caused by lack of understanding.
As the saying goes, there is the way things are, and the way they ought to be, but all that matters is how things are.
The harsh reality is Filipinos see things differently then Westerners.
And the reality is the majority of them like living in a hypocritical, racist, semi-feudal society. Otherwise they would change how they live.
You are the racist one for thinking Filipinos should have the same values as Westerners.
Along a similar line is the book about Thailand called 'Private Dancer'. Because the book was called 'racist' etc. No publisher would publish the book. The author eventually self published it. Eventually when it got published in print the first place it was published was Thailand.
http://www.amazon.com/Private-Dancer-Stephen-Leather/dp/9810539169
Foreigners are always baffled, how come my household help do not steal from me, are not lazy, are never late etc. But when I tell them how to get shit done in the Philippines. The foreigners call me racist. They are the racist ones, they expect the Philippines to run according to western ways.
There isn't a single mention of Taoism, but this book is 100% the culmination of Taoist teaching in the form of martial arts.
The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway.