07/01/2026
Vital Signs: Philippine Short Stories on Healing
Ronnie E. Baticulon, Marjorie Evasco
Milflores Publishing
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
"This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2025, as I’m a huge fan of Doc Ron—having read Some Days You Can't Save Them All in 2023 and meeting him in 2024. After finishing it last night, I felt that it was worth all the anticipation.
At its core, this collection of 13 short stories on medicine and healing, spanning decades of publication, speaks of one thing: humanity.
The stories featuring doctors and healers, even Lacuesta's "Doc Duwende," show that they are human, too. They get confused, exhausted, and even feel resentment. In stories where illness is more pronounced, such as Villanueva’s "We Won’t Cry About This," pain and grief feel inevitable—and sometimes, if we’re lucky, so does hope. Humanity shines brightest in stories about caregivers and the community. In Avenido’s "Si Yobab Marley," we’re reminded that caregiving goes beyond the four walls of a room; it can exist in the streets and for people we don’t even know.
These stories show that humans are humans: flawed, imperfect, and complex—but also capable of goodness. Of giving. Of loving. Of empathizing. And that is where healing finds its roots.
Overall, this is a must-read for every Filipino reader. Baticulon and Evasco have put together an exceptional collection that both medical and non-medical readers can resonate with. So I hope you’ll pick this up and find meaning within its pages, too."
— Kat, Jan 2026
