For the love of a good book

“Reading is the equivalent to thinking with someone else’s head instead of with one’s own.” — Arthur Schopenhauer

November 1 marks All Soul’s Day; the day when we visit cemeteries to reminisce about and remember our dearly departed. That act of story swapping and sharing is as old as the human race. The modern book began existence in the simple act of telling a story. Some of our mankind’s greatest tales began as oral stories: Beowulf and the Iliad to name two. Books are the preserved memories of humanity; they are gifts from generations past.

This November we celebrate the 13th Philippine Book Development Month. The theme of this year’s National Book Development Month is “Galing Pinoy, Basahin!”

Our education does not stop when we finish college. It stops when we stop reading. There are two kinds of knowledge. First, is knowing the subject; second is knowing where we can find the information we need. That is where books come in. The purpose of having a book development month is first, to make sure that relevant books are published; second, to make sure that they are read by the public. We cannot simply depend on books published abroad. We need to encourage and support domestic writers. Books become the memories of humanity, but when they are written they reflect and capture the mood, beliefs and events of their time.

The Philippines has been blessed with some of the finest writers in the region. Writers such as Nick Joaquin and F. Sionil Jose are two that come quickly to mind, but we have produced so many laudable writers in Tagalog (and other Philippine dialects), English and even Spanish. When we consider a writer such as Jose Rizal we usually gloss over his technical proficiency and focus on the historical impact of his output. However, Jose Rizal is the finest satirist and (one of the best craftsmen) in Philippine literary history. When read for the pleasure of the written word, his writings are highly enjoyable. We need to support our authors and writers (literary and non-literary alike). Past generations had superlative writers giving voice to the issues of their times; we must make sure that we discover and provide opportunities to the voices of the next generations.

A love of books and reading is not something we are born with, but is nurtured and encouraged. The best way for all of us to commemorate National Book Month is to go to the library or bookstore and pick up a few books to read for pleasure. Reading some of the great literary masters is a good place to start, but a better one is reading some of our Philippine literary masters. Even better, if you have children, take them to the bookstore or library and select books you can read together. It is a certifiable fact that reading to children when they are young better prepares them for success in school and later in life. It promotes language proficiency and even has a positive effect on the development of cognitive function and intelligence. Education does not only occur in schools, but in the home with the simple act of reading…together.

The National Book Development Board has programmed a variety of activities throughout the month of November to celebrate the 13th Philippine Book Development Month - among them workshops on “How to Read to the Next Generation”. For more information you can visit their website at www.nbdb.gov.ph. For more general information about reading to children, you can visit the “Reading is Fundamental” website at www.rif.org.