The Sad Little Fact: An Open Letter to Penguin Random House Canada

This is my request to Penguin Random House Canada. Please make the ebook version of The Sad Little Fact, available to customers in the Philippines. I am a Filipino teacher librarian and I teach information literacy. I am also a trainer, facilitator and resource speaker for teachers and librarians. This book is one of my recommended reads for teachers and school librarians. With this book and the use of the appropriate teaching methods we can battle fake news and misinformation with information literacy skills instruction for K-12 learners.

Specifically, I am going to use this book as my springboard for my plenary session at the Reading Association of the Philippines National Demofest on October 29, 2019 where more than 200 teachers will convene to converse and discuss issues on multiple literacy skills instruction. I am going to read it aloud using Kindle or iBook. But there are restrictions in access. Our opportunity to engage in Jonah Winter’s story as one community is lost.

Of course I can use a different book. Of course I can download the YouTube videos of the book being read aloud. But I don’t want to do that.

I want to own the book.
I want to share the book.
I want to read the book aloud.
I am a reader.
This is my choice.
My choice is to read the book, The Sad Little Fact by Jonah Winter.

Please, Penguin Random House Canada, help me help others love books and reading. Help me help others teach Information Literacy. Please make the ebook available to customers in the Philippines.

Zarah Gagatiga
Teacher Librarian, Filipino

#PenguinRandomHouseCanada #TheSadLittleFact #JonahWinter

Book Review (SPOILERS): Traitor to the Throne

Traitor to the Throne
Alwyn Hamilton
Viking, 2017

I will begin my review of Traitor to the Throne, the second installment to the Rebel of the Sands, with the quoted paragraphs.

 "In this backdrop, Amani struggles to find herself while Jin has his own agenda. Jin maybe fighting alongside his brother, but he dreams of freedom; of being in a place where he can truly be himself; where he is not beholden to anyone else; where he could be the master of his fate."

"But this is a dream yet to come. Or not. My guess is, since Amani has only discovered her true power at the end of the book, Jin has to make a decision somewhere in book 2. Fight or Flight? Can he do both? Will Amani continue to become her own hero despite her growing feelings for Jin? Will the Rebel Prince prevail? Is there a traitor waiting in the wings?"

These came from the book review I wrote about Rebel around June last year. If you wish to read my review before this one, just click the link that is highlighted. There are spoilers in this review, so, don't say I didn't warn you.

I am glad that most of my questions that came up in Rebel were answered in Traitor. Amani did become the hero in book 2 to the point of leading the Rebellion to the next installment. Jin was gone most of the time, spying and gathering intelligence for the Rebellion. Jin and Amani's relationship have grown more intense as well as the political intrigue that envelopes them both. Since Amani was traded as a slave to join the Sultan's harem, I got a good look of the nature of the Rebellion's enemies and their battle plan. The Sultan is really evil.  

Traitor bespeaks of many messages for the reader to take it all in at once. I am still digesting the whole novel, actually. One of the messages I took away from Traitor that lingers still is this: those who love and stay loyal to the virtues and values that make us human in a time of conflict and war eventually die and get hurt. This is a more compelling read, for me, at least. But that is not saying that Traitor is better than Rebel. The latter is intriguingly beautiful and captivating. The former is breathtakingly exciting and ruthless at the same time. 

Sam's mindscape as he sneaks into Shazad's room.

What Hamilton began as narrative layering in Rebel, she continued so skillfully in Traitor. The legends and djinn lore she used as padding to the world she built for Miraji and its characters is an homage to the Arabian Nights. The crafting was well done that the legends and djinn lore she introduced in selected chapters made Miraji and its inhabitants more believable in a folkloric sense.

I am glad there are more djinns this time. And golems too! Shazad continues to kick ass. There is a rainbow moment between a demji and a human. New characters were introduced and a few good ones died. Sam is one of my favorites to emerge. While I wonder about Jin's prolonged stay in Xichia, and who funds the rebellion of the Rebel Prince, I also wonder what will become of Sam in book 3.

I will read Traitor to the Throne once more so I can post my guide for teachers and parents who wish to discuss the book with their teens. Here now is the link to the resource and reading guide I whipped up for Rebel of the Sands.

Rating: 5 Bookmarks

Book Review: The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business
Charles Duhigg
Penguin Random House,


This is a book I have always wanted to read and do a review about. As I am very much interested in how the human brain works, The Power of Habit meets this interest and more!

I enjoyed reading about the human brain's physiological make up and its capacity to work wonders in the human body and, yes, in one's spirituality (this is just me and my reading of the book). Neuroscience still has a lot to tell us about our brain. How it has the capacity to rewire itself, to grow and to evolve! We are changing, learning beings and our habits manifest this dynamism.

Charles Duhigg begins by telling stories of people who underwent changes in the brain both by choice and by chance. Through the stories of real life people overcoming challenges that affected their physical and personal well being, I realized how powerful the human brain can be if we are mindful and aware of how to make use of it. Duhigg elaborates this cognitive power with more stories of groups of people interacting in the workplace, in the community and, at large, in the bigger global society.

Habits begin with the individual person. But the person is not removed from the bigger and wider world. I find the stories inspiring most especially the ones about change beginning from within so that others can be influenced by it. Our habits shape our identities. Our habits have an effect on the environment we live in.

I am recommending this to readers who wish to better themselves in business or in the pursuit of one's passion. Give this book shelf space in your library or in your e-reader.

Rating: Four bookmarks over five.