Best Reads from the Philippines at the 3^rd Asian Festival of Children’s Content ~ by Tarie Sabido

May 26 to 29 was the 3^rd Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) in Singapore, and this year the festival highlighted children’s books from the Philippines! The Philippine booth at the festival showcased the six winners of the 1^st Philippine National Children’s Book Awards along with other fiction and nonfiction picture books from leading Philippine publishers Tahanan Books, Adarna House, Bookmark, Lampara Books, Anvil, and CANVAS. I am very happy and proud to report that visitors to the booth oohed and aahed over all the book illustrations!

One of the featured panel discussions at the AFCC was “Trajectories and Themes in Children’s Literature from the Philippines,” with the popular and award-winning children’s book creators Russell Molina (Philippines), Jomike Tejido (Philippines), Candy Gourlay (UK/Philippines), and Isabel Roxas (US/Philippines). With joy and verve, Russell, Jomike, Candy, and Isabel set up for the audience a window to the Philippine children’s literature scene. Russell announced that it was more fun writing children’s books in the Philippines because the entire community loves stories and participates in storytelling. Some of the stories the Filipino community loves to share are about our modern-day heroes: hardworking overseas Filipino workers and the families they support in the Philippines. Jomike introduced the wide variety of illustrations for Philippine traditional picture books (legends and folk tales), contemporary picture books, informative picture books, and pop picture books (urban culture-based picture books). In the Philippines, illustrations for children include everything from fine art that also appeals to adults and intricate collage, to abstract art and digital work this is e-book and app-ready.

Candy told the story of how she learned that she shouldn’t write what she knows, she should write who she is! For years, Candy wrote stories that did not feature the Philippines or Filipino characters. These stories were all rejected by publishers in the UK and she was not published until she realized that being Filipino was part of what made her an interesting writer, and that a story with a distinctly Filipino perspective is a special story. Lastly, Isabel talked about her advantages and disadvantages as a Filipino illustrator in the US. Her advantages include the Internet as a great equalizer, all the uncovered territory in picture books, and of course, her unique Filipino point of view. Her disadvantages include her lack of a network in the US, greater competition, and readers’ lack of exposure to Philippine culture. Fortunately, the whole world now has greater interest in Asian languages and cultures, due in no small part to all the excellent and exciting talent coming from Asia. Talents like Russell, Jomike, Candy, and Isabel!

Other AFCC sessions with Filipino speakers were: Jomike’s fun paper folding workshop, Isabel’s very helpful tips for beginning illustrators, Candy’s presentation on how she used myth and magic in her successful debut novel Tall Story, popular blogger Blooey Singson’s presentation on the art and science of writing online and print book reviews, and Dr. Myra Garces-Bacsal’s lectures on picture book selection and how the book blogging network can be used as a classroom resource.

If you are curious about the joi de vivre and diverse talents of Filipino authors and illustrators, please check out our children’s books online – and at the Philippine booth at next year’s AFCC!

I leave you with Candy’s wonderful “Filipino heavy” AFCC video:

Tarie Sabido is an English teacher and editor in the Philippines. She blogs about children’s and YA books at Into the Wardrobe and Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind, and writes for Kwentillion, the Philippines’ first YA science fiction and fantasy magazine. Tarie was a judge for the 4^th Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers’ Literary Awards (CYBILS) and the 1^st Philippine National Children’s Book Awards.

We are thrilled to have Tarie join us as PaperTigers’ Global Voices Guest Blogger for the month of June. Part 2 of her series will be posted here on the blog on June 13th and Part 3 on June 20th.

Click on event name for more information

2011 Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices Children’s Book Award Winner Announces~ Newcastle, United Kingdom

Book Launch and Signings: The Grand Plan to Fix Everything by Uma Krishnaswami~ USA

Fremantle Children’s Literature Centre Exhibits and Programs~ Fremantle, Australia

Dromkeen National Centre for Picture Book Art Exhibits~ Riddells Creek, Australia

Screenings for Library of the Early Mind: a documentary film exploring childrens literature~ Canada and USA

International Youth Library Exhibits~ Munich, Germany

Seven Stories (the National Home of Children’s Books in Britain) Events~ Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature Exhibits~ Abilene, TX, USA

Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Events

Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences 2011: Coasts and Continents: Exploring Peoples and Places~ ongoing until  June 4, Fredericton, NB, Canada

The Guardian Hay Festival: A Festival for Tots, Teens and In-Betweens~ ongoing until June 5, United Kingdom

Singapore Book Fair~ ongoing until June 5, Singapore

Skipping Stones Magazine’s Youth Honor Award Program – Multicultural Awareness and Nature Appreciation~ entries accepted until June 25

Golden Kite, Golden Dreams: The SCBWI Awards Exhibit~ ongoing until June 24, Hattiesburg, MS, USA

Museum of Childhood Exhibit: Author and Illustrator Judith Kerr~ ongoing until Sep 4, London, United Kingdom

Meet Your Friends From Japan! An Exhibit at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art~ ongoing until Sep 20 Amherst, MA, USA

Mirror, an Exhibition by Children’s Author and Artist Jeannie Baker~ ongoing until Oct 11, Ipswich City, Australia

2012 South Asia Book Award~ entries accepted until Dec 31

Exhibits of Winning Entries from the 2011 Growing Up Asian in America Contest~ ongoing until Feb 2012, USA

International Symposium: Literature. Children. Time~ June 1 – 5, Lviv, Ukraine

Children’s Literature Book Club for Adults Discusses Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan and Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman~ June 2, Fresno, CA, USA

SCBWI-CCP Children’s Book Conference~ June 4, Manila, Philppines

Voices on the Coast: a Youth Literature Festival~ June 4 – 8, Sunshine Coast, Australia

The Canadian Aboriginal Writing and Arts Challenge Reception and Exhibition~ June 6, Toronto, ON, Canada

Little Manfred: In Conversation with Michael Morpurgo and Michael Foreman~ June 6, London, United Kingdom

Librarian’s Day~ June 7, Cuba

International Conference: Picture & Text~ June 8 – 10, Tallinn, Estonia

Dancing By The Light Of The Moon: The Art Of Fred Marcellino~ June 9 – Oct 29, Abilene, TX, USA

Bridlington Poetry Festival~ June 10 – 11, Skirlaugh, United Kingdom

National Black Book Festival~ June 10 – 12, Houston, TX, USA

Red House Children’s Book Award Ceremony~ June 11, Birmingham, United Kingdom

Poet/Author John Hegley’s Book Launch at Discover Children’s Story Centre~ June 11, London, United Kingdom

Mixed Roots Film and Literary Festival~ June 11 – 12, Los Angeles, CA, USA

4th Annual Children’s Literature Conference And Horace Mann Upstanders Award~June 12, Los Angeles, CA, USA

The Canadian Children’s Book Centre‘s Annual General Meeting~ June 13, Toronto, ON, Canada

Seoul International Book Fair~ June 15 – 19, Seoul, South Korea

International Day of the African Child~ June 16

Borders Book Festival~ June 16 – 19, Melrose, United Kingdom

4th World Children’s Festival~ June 17 – 19, Washington, D.C., USA

The Torquay Froth and Bubble Literary Festival~ June 18 – 19, Torquay, Australia

Next Library Conference~ June 19 – 21, Aarhus, Denmark

World Refugee Day~ June 20

Refugee Week: Different Pasts, Shared Future~ June 20 – 26, United Kingdom

CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Children’s Book Awards Winners Announced~ June 23, London, United Kingdom

Children’s Literature Association Conference: Revolt, Rebellion, Protest: Change and Insurrection in Children’s Literature~ June 23 – 25, Roanoke, VA, USA

Fifth Biennial Conference of the Society for the History of Children and Youth~ June 23 – 25, New York City, NY, USA

American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference~ June 23 – 28, New Orleans, LA, USA

ALSC Activities During the ALA Annual Conference~ June 23 – 28, New Orleans, LA, USA

YALSA Activities During the ALA Annual Conference~ June 23 – 28, New Orleans, LA, USA

Kids and Young Adult Literature Festival~ June 25, Rozelle, Australia

Adarna House Summer Workshop for Teachers: Learning from the Past~ June 25, Quezon City, Philippines

USBBY Session at the ALA Annual Conference “International Children’s Book Publishing: A Small Press Perspective”~ June 25, New Orleans, LA, USA

Sunthorn Phu Day (celebrated poet)~ June 26, Thailand

Newbery-Caldecott-Wilder Banquet~ June 26, New Orleans, LA, USA

Canadian Multiculturalism Day~ June 27, Canada

International Reading Association Workshops~ June 27 – 28, Washington, D.C. USA

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Adarna House’s Workshops for Literacy~ Philipinnes

Cape Town Book Fair~ ongoing until Aug  2, Cape Town, South Africa

The 39th Annual SCBWI International Summer Conference~ ongoing until Aug 2, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Lima International Book Fair~ ongoing until Aug 4, Lima, Peru

Simply Life, Simply Color: An Exhibit of Illustrator Ruben de Jesus’ Work~ ongoing until Aug 8, Makati City, Philippines

2010 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition of Children’s Books~ ongoing until Aug 16, Tokyo, Japan

Caroline Irby’s Exhibition: A Child From Everywhere~ ongoing until Aug 30, London, United Kingdom

An Exquisite Vision: The Art of Lisbeth Zwerger~ongoing until Sep 26, Amherst, MA, USA

Submissions Accepted for Lee & Low’s New Voices Writers Award~ ongoing until Sep 30, USA

The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature Exhibit: Golden Kite, Golden Dreams: the SCBWI Awards~ ongoing until Oct 1, Abilene, TX, USA

Dromkeen National Centre for Picture Book Art Exhibit: From the Collection~ ongoing until Oct 24, Riddells Creek, Australia

Expo 2010~ ongoing until  Oct 31, Shanghai, China

International Youth Library Exhibit: Shaun Tan, Pictures and Books~ ongoing until Oct 31, Munich, Germany

Everyday Adventures Growing Up: Art from Picture Books~ ongoing until Nov 28, Chicago, IL, USA

Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award 2011~ entries accepted until Dec 31, Singapore

Seminar on Korean History & Culture for K – 12 Teachers and Administrators~ Aug 2  – 6, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Booktalkers: Girls Read Too~ Aug 2, Melbourne, Australia

International Youth Library Exhibition: The Treasury of Binette Schroeder~ Aug 4 – Oct 1, Munich, Germany

Kazakhstan Reading Association Conference~ Aug 5 – 7, Taraz, Kazakhstan

Books, Brushes, and Ashley Bryan~ Aug 8, Amherst, MA, USA

Landscapes of Literacy: From Library to Studio in the Early Childhood Centers of Pistoia, Italy~ Aug 8 – 9, Amherst, MA, USA

The Canadian Book Camp~ Aug 9 – 13, Vancouver, BC, Canada

World Library and Information Congress: 76th IFLA General Conference and Assembly~ Aug 10 – 15, Gothenburg, Sweden

FinRA Finnish Reading Association 2nd Baltic Sea Conference, 15th Nordic Reading Conference: Literacy Skills for Learning~ Aug 11 – 13, Åbo/Turku, Finland

Puffinalia: An Exhibition of Puffin Books 1940 – 2010~ Aug 11 – 31, Melbourne, Australia

21st International Book Biennial of São Paulo~ Aug 12 – 22, São Paulo, Brazil

SCBWI Austin Presents: Representing Diversity in Children’s Books~ Aug 14, Austin, TX, USA

Edinburgh International Book Festival~ Aug 14 – 30, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

The Storylines Festival of New Zealand Children’s Writers and Illustrators~ Aug 15 – 22, New Zealand

LIANZA Children’s Book Awards Ceremony~ Aug 16, Wellington, New Zealand

Library Week~ Aug 16 – 22, New Zealand

Reading Association of Nigeria Biennial Conference~ Aug 18 – 21, Makurdi, Nigeria

Chapter & Verse, a Book Club for Adults Discussing Children’s Lit~ Aug 19, USA

Children’s Book of the Year Awards Winners Announced~ Aug 20, Australia

The Crichton Award for New Illustrators Winner Announced~ Aug 21, Australia

Summer Dream Literary Arts Festival~ Aug 21, Vancouver, BC, Canada

CBCA’s Children’s Book Week: Across the Story Bridge~ Aug 21 – 27, Australia

2010 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition of Children’s Books~ Aug 21 – Sep 26, Nishinomiya, Japan

Indigenous Literacy Project’s I Heart Art – Art Auction~ Aug 25, Sydney, Australia

Western Australia Spring Poetry Festival and National Poetry Week~ Aug 27 – Sep 5, Australia

Melbourne Writers Festival: Stories From Every Angle~ Aug 27 – Sep 5, Melbourne, Australia

Singapore International Storytelling Festival~ Aug 30 – Sep 8, Singapore

Taranaki Children’s Book Festival~ Aug 31 – Sep 4, Taranaki, New Zealand

With our current focus on the Philippines, I have been exploring Filipino blogs – and indeed, this post would have gone live a couple of hours ago if my attention hadn’t been caught by this or that blog post!

I already know and follow Into the Wardrobe – and indeed Tarie has been a major contributor to this issue of PaperTigers: read her interviews with authors Carla Pacis, Dorina Lazo Gilmore (reprint) and Edna Cabcabin Moran (reprint). Tarie is also one of this year’s Cybils judges, in the Science Fiction and Fantasy category, so she definitely has her finger on the pulse of what’s out there!

Also Zarah at School Librarian in Action – Zarah opens up the world of Filippino children’s literature and is always happy to share events with us here at PaperTigers. As current president of PBBY, the Philippines chapter of IBBY, she’s another person who seems to know everything that’s going on – definitely another blog to follow!

Of the other blogs I’ve come across, I’ve found plenty of interest at Masayang Mgbasa!, publisher Adarna House’s blog; and I love illustrator and all-round artist Mark Salvatus’ blog – his current art projects are very different to his illustrations for Papa’s House, Mama’s House, which I blogged about recently! I’ve also enjoyed reading Nitoy’s Homeschool Journal and Children, Books and Life Lessons, writer Jean Lee C. Patindol’s blog.

And I’ve read some very moving posts too – writer and illustrator May Tobias Papa describing the devastation to her family’s home during the recent flooding in the Philippines, alongside delightful musings on her small son’s discovery of reading; and writer Dean Alfar’s up-to-the-minute detailings of lack of running water and power-cuts in the wake of Typhoon Ondoy and, most recently, his beautiful eulogy to an old friend, all at his blog Notes from the Peanut Gallery.

So go ahead and dip into these blogs – and if you have any other recommendations do let us know!

You can read more about the devastation caused by Typhoon Onday at TyphoonOnday.org and its sister-site OndayRelief.org, where you can also make a donation to the relief fund.

Narrated by a five-year-old child, Papa’s House, Mama’s House by Jean Lee C. Patindol and illustrated by Mark Salvatus (Adarna House, 2004) delves into the pros and cons of dividing the week between the homes of separated parents – and ensuring that, despite there being different rules and routines in each, both are also the happy, welcoming homes of the children.

The narrative is beautifully attuned to a child’s perspective and the striking red background to the highly dynamic illustrations increases the story’s impact, especially as the depictions of the narrator and her two sisters are endearingly pixie-like. Because the only clue to the narrator’s identity is through these abstract illustrations, in which she is in fact a girl, this story can feel relevant to both girls and boys. Having said that, though, looking at the publisher’s page about the book, it refers to the narrator as “he”… and, this being a bilingual book, it may be that this ambiguity is only in the English and not in the Filipino, which I don’t read…

When the inevitable question comes up: why can’t her parents live together in the same house, both Mama and Papa give imaginative and comprehensible answers – and at the end, they come together to share in their child’s sixth-birthday celebrations.

This is a beautifully reassuring book, both for children trying to make sense of their parents’ separation; and for children who may be trying to understand what is happening in their friends’ lives – and not forgetting parents who are striving to provide security in the aftermath of such a situation. In an end-note, author Jean Lee C. Patindol explains how the story came into being following some insensitive remarks from neigbours to her five-year-old-son after her own separation: and how she struggled “to find a way to explain to my children that, even with our unusual family setup, they are still very much loved.” Through this story she has certainly succeeded in doing so, not only for her own children but universally.

Papa’s House, Mama’s House was the 2004 Grand Winner of both the PBBY Salanga Prize (for writers) and the PBBY Alcala Prize (for illustrators). You can read a full review here, as part of our current focus on the Philippines. And I must just point you towards the latest post on Jean a.k.a. Jeanette’s blog, in which she relates a conversation with her nine-year-old daughter…

Today the organizers of The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, given annually to books and works that reflect the spirit of Astrid Lindgren, have announced the 168 candidates nominated for the 2010 award (to download the nomination list as a pdf, click here).

The list of writers, illustrators, oral storytellers and literacy-related organizations, working in various literary traditions and languages, represents more than 60 countries and is a treasure trove of talent and commitment to books and reading.

In addition to author Allen Say and author/promoter of literacy Greg Mortenson, proudly nominated by us, the list includes, among many others, New Zealander author Margaret Mahy; Australian Hazel Edwards; South African Niki Daly; Mongolian writer/poet/promoter of reading Dashdondog Jamba and Filipino illustrator Albert Gamos. And for organizations promoting reading and literacy, it lists IBBY International; Room to Read, in the U.S.; Filipino publishing house Adarna; La Fundación Riecken from Guatemala, and many more.

Considering all these strong candidates, it looks like the jury members have their work cut out for them. Their decision will be a hard one to reach—but reach it they will (and expertly so)! The winner or winners will be announced in Vimmerby, Sweden (the birthplace of Astrid Lindgren) on March 24, 2010, and the announcement will be broadcast live to the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, in Italy (which next year will take place March 23-25).