Tag: Adarna House

Ready for ReaderCon?

Life has been a whirlwind since I got back from the AFCC, as preparations for the 2nd Filipino ReaderCon (Filipino ReaderCon) were in full swing. It was all hands on deck for members of the Filipino Book Bloggers group, and it has been great to see volunteers from different book clubs banding together to make this happen.

Last year, the ReaderCon was a half-day event that coincided with the Manila International Book Fair, and this year, we’ve gotten bigger. United We Read: The 2nd Filipino ReaderCon is happening tomorrow, August 18, 2012 (Saturday), 8:00am to 6:00pm at the Filipinas Heritage Library. Registration fee is Php150, and you can pre-register for the event here. This event is held in partnership with Filipinas Heritage Library (FHL) and National Book Development Board (NBDB), and sponsored by Scholastic, Lampara Books, McDonald’s, Flipreads, Anvil Publishing, Hachette Philippines, Amici Philippines, OMF Literature and Adarna House.

So I’ve been on the committee for the 1st Filipino Readers’ Choice Awards (with Tarie and Tina) and while it was a tremendous undertaking, we were overwhelmed by the response we received. Reading through the nominations, tallying up over 2500 votes, and watching the judges deliberate over the finalists has been an amazing experience. We’re finally awarding the Readers’ Choice Awards tomorrow at the ReaderCon, and we’ve definitely learned a lot to make the awards bigger and better next year.

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Happy National Children’s Book Day!

Every third Tuesday of July, the Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY), the organization committed to the development of children’s literature in the Philippines, leads the celebration of National Children’s Book Day, commemorating the anniversary of the publication of Jose Rizal’s The Monkey and the Turtle in Trubner’s Oriental Record in London.

Rizal’s The Monkey and the Turtle is said to be the first illustrated story for children. A draft of the story is scribbled on an album belonging to Juan Luna’s wife Paz Pardo de Tavera. The story is based on a Filipino fable about the silly monkey and a clever turtle and is an elementary school staple in the Philippines. In fact, one of my fondest memories of grade school is connected to this story. In second grade, this was our class’s piece for Sabayang Pagbigkas (class oratorical contest) on Linggo ng Wika, with half the class playing “Pagong” (turtle) and the other half playing “Matsing” (monkey). Hahaha, I was in the monkey group and I still remember the very emphatic “Tatadtarin kita nang pinong-pino!” (I will chop you into tiny pieces!).

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A rough guide to the Manila International Book Fair

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Three days to go until the Manila International Book Fair!  A lot of people have been asking me for tips about the Manila International Book Fair, so I decided to create this (unofficial) guide  based on what I’ve seen over recent years.

I’ve been attending the MIBF for five years running now, covering events, shopping, and just generally enjoying the flurry of bookish activity around me. And every year, the exhibitors offer something new, and there is always a different lineup of special events to look forward to.

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