Esquire: 10 Filipino Female Authors to Read This Women's Month
Strobel explores the Philippines' glorious culture before the colonizers arrived. In pre-colonial Philippines, gender fluidity wasn't taboo and Babaylans were the epitome of glory.
Vogue: 10 Books On The Filipino Experience
There has been a growing awareness over the past few years not to neglect the rich history of our pre-colonial past. This increasing interest in our indigenous cultures is discussed in rich detail in the book Babaylan, edited by Leny Mendoza Strobel, which offers insight into beliefs around healing spirits, Kapwa psychology, and non-conforming gender.
The Next Somewhere: 16 Books by Filipina Authors You Should Read
In pre-colonial Philippines, Babaylans communed with spirits of nature and the world beyond. These revered shamans were almost always women or feminized men, becoming a modern symbol for non-conforming gender. In this anthology, decolonizing scholars, artists, poets, cultural theorists, and anthropologists offer insights as to how to call back the healing spirit and wisdom of the Babayalan. The tome is rich in spiritual and cultural capital and provides a framework to tap into Kapwa psychology, the fundamental Filipino belief that all Filipinos share kinship as human beings.