Preview: Bookwatch July Issue

Here is a sneak peek of the July issue of Bookwatch. On the cover is a kapre, smoking a tobacco, regaling his young audience with stories great and small. How apt since we celebrate National Children's Book Day (NCBD) this month. Certainly, there are stories to tell, great and small, about the NCBD and the people behind its industry.

As guest writer for this issue, I wrote a think piece on the PBBY Salanga and Alcala Prizes. I threw in a bit of history of the awards and how it helped the industry grow into what it is today. The National Children's Book Award (NCBS) is  in the article as well as the necessity of raising the bar in children's and young adult (YA) book publishing in the country.

Speaking of YA, there's news on the KABANATA Workshop too and a brief mention about the Pilar Perez Medallion. Such is the history for a clamor of books and reading materials for teens. This issue looks into that and if you are a children's lit or YA lit advocate, you may just find the list of tales and stories of the fantastic a starting point to campaign for the development of YA lit in the country today.

Thanks to Paolo Chikiamco, editor of Bookwatch, for giving me this wonderful opportunity to write about what is very close to my heart. Here's hoping we can keep inspiring more people to support the growth of Philippine Children's and Young Adult Literature.