In the Philippines, the month of July is dedicated to the promotion of children's books. National Children's Book Day (NCBD) is celebrated every third Tuesday of this month. With this year's theme, Bumasa at Lumaya, the Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY) will celebrate through a book fair and children's literature talks.
The book fair and children's literature talks will be held on July 23 at Xavier School in San Juan. The fair shall feature local children's book publishers. Aside from selling selected titles at a discounted rate, publishers will also hold simultaneous storytelling sessions. A special package of all National Children's Book Award-winning titles, from 2010 to 2016, may also be purchased at the fair. Entrance to the fair is free!
The culmination of the NCBD celebration is the children's literature talks. This whole-day event will be a gathering of writers, illustrators, students, storytellers, teachers, librarians, and parents. For a registration fee of PHP800.00, participants may choose to attend among discussions on writing sensitive stories, body positivity in young adult fiction, the evolution of children's book illustrations, raising multilingual readers, and more. Award-winning author Augie Rivera (Alamat ng Ampalaya, Isang Harding Papel); award-winning illustrator Liza Flores (Chenelyn! Chenelyn!, The Secret is in the Soil); and reading advocate and educator Victor Villanueva (Reading Association of the Philippines) are some of the industry experts who will be sharing their knowledge on children's content and reading. Organizations such as The Learning Library and The Learning Basket will also share their expertise on multilingualism and homeschooling respectively.
For inquiries about the book fair and children's literature talks, you may e-mail ncbdph@gmail.com or call 352-6765 loc 204.