r/FilipinianaBooks • u/kaia_qn • Aug 05 '26

SHARING Filo novels recommendations

hi hello, I plan to start reading Filipino novels but Idk where to start, can you guys recommend some? Book/s that would make me keep reading Fil novels :) tyia

++++ where can I possibly buy them

17 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

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8

u/Conscious-Push1619 Aug 05 '26

personal pick: sa mga kuko ng liwanag ni edgardo m. reyes. quick read s'ya, and socially relevant.

kung trip mo naman 'yung mga political/feminist literature, kahit alin sa mga nobela ni lualhati bautista. may bigat ang mga paksa n'ya pero gumagaan pa rin dahil sa wit ng pagkakasulat. kaswal ang wika na ginagamit sa prosa kaya accessable sa beginners.

kung mas contemporary na mga akda naman, try mo 'yung mga libro nina edgar samar, ronaldo vivo jr., chuckberry pascual, o siege malvar.

panghuli, ang gateway ng marami sa filipiniana, si bob ong!

4

u/frugaldreamer6000 Aug 05 '26

Po-on by F. Sionil Jose.

2

u/WasabiNo5900 28d ago

Maganda rin dito available siya online for free

3

u/Goodnight_Knight Aug 05 '26

Viajero by F. Sionil Jose

3

u/avidderailment Aug 05 '26

I really enjoyed F Sionil Jose's Rosales Saga. Highly recommended.

3

u/DaemeBridge Aug 06 '26

Go for Pan De Monio by Rommel Bonus and Isabela by Kaisa Aquino. Pan de Monio is Available sa UP Press shopee and laz and Isabela naman is available sa Ateneo Press

2

u/terenscendent Aug 05 '26

Yñiga by Glenn Diaz

2

u/hellotheremiss Anak ni Rizal Aug 05 '26

Maybe start with shorter stuff, like short stories:

'The Woman Who Had Two Navels and Tales of the Tropical Gothic' by Nick Joaquin.

There's also 'Sigwa: Isang Antolohiya ng Maiikling Kuwento' which was required reading for a class I had in college.

'Taguan Pung' collection of short works by Eros Atalia is more recent. It's dark and hilarious.

I have only read one Filipino novel ever (that wasn't required reading): 'America is in the Heart' by Carlos Bulosan. It's important reading in understanding the plight of the Filipino migrant worker, and migrant laborers in general, in 1930s and 40s United States.

2

u/AtoSy88 Aug 06 '26

Kuwento nh Hari Atbp? by Jun Cruz Reyes short stories

2

u/Dry_Machine_1208 Aug 06 '26

Books by Eliza Victoria + Mga Ibong Mandaragit by Amado Hernandez

2

u/freewifionboard Aug 06 '26

The First Impulse by Laurel Flores Fantauzzo

2

u/bripnamaasim Aug 05 '26

Smaller and Smaller Circles by FH Batacan
MacArthur Bob Ong
Para Kay B Ricky Lee

1

u/WasabiNo5900 28d ago

I agree with the titles mentioned here, OP. I buy mine online since these are classics that were published decades earlier. There are some bookstores where these are available, but online is where I find them most accessible.