Outstanding Filipino children’s books

The Philippine Board on Books for Young People and the National Book Development Board  recently awarded the National Children’s Book Awards to nine  books published in 2016 and 2017. Here are two of them.

I am an avid reader of books about Philippine history, culture and politics. In past columns I have recommended books on many different areas of Philippine life and other Filipiniana topics. For the first time, I discovered a children’s book on Philippine history that I read from cover to cover. 

A Lolong time ago: A Prehistory of the Philippines written by  Michelline Suarez, Jonee Garcia and Divine Reyes, illustrated by Benjor Catindig and published by Tahanan Books for Young Readers is described by Nina Lim-Yuson: “ The past once thought of as ‘boring’ by kids is given a new twist. History comes alive in this easy and engaging book.” A young reader Iago, age 13, said: “ Kid-friendly, accurate illustrations, help us learn about pre-colonial Philippines in a cool way.” Santino Palafox, age 12, wrote: “ Awesome! Amazing!  You’ll want to read it over and over again.”

The book may have been written for children, but adults will definitely find the narrative riveting and the illustrations catchy and educational. In their authors’ note the writers state that they are not historians ; but, they are authors with avid interest in Philippine history. They state: “ ...we want to tell you what we know in a way you will understand. We’ve broken it all down into manageable chunks of information you will find funny and entertaining and enlightening.  To do this we consulted a lot of historians and did a lot of fact checking with them. We also did a lot of research, reading, writing and illustrating.”

The language reminds me of excellent grade school and high school teachers who discovered a way of making academic subjects like history, science and geography exciting subjects for their students without sacrificing learning objectives. The chapter titles are examples of their writing style.

Aside from the Introduction and Epilogue, the book has eight chapters: Chapter 1 Once Upon A Dahon: Creation Myths We Told Ourselves; Chapter 2: Exposed : The Truth About Our Origins: Chapter3. My Lolo Was a Caveman: The Very First Filipinos; Chapter 4: When Lolo Planted Rice: The Neolithic thru Metal Ages; Chapter 5: Row, Row, Row Your Balangay: Inter-Island Travel and Trade: Chapter 6: Datu Puti Was Kayumanggi: The Emergence of Society; Chapter 7: Life on These Islands: Buhay sa Bahay ni Kuya Atbp; Chapter 8: Lifestyles of the Precolonial: Fashion, Art and Culture.

In today’s globalized world, it has become more critical that the Filipino youth are educated and learn to appreciate their Filipino cultural historical roots. This is an issue addressed by this book. In the Introduction, the authors wrote: “ The problem is that nowadays, none of our kids ( that means YOU) want to read it. The words “ history book” bring to mind thick volumes with too many words and not enough pictures, and dates and lists of facts to memorize. So we decided to give you just the good bits, the important bits, and the drama and action packed bits. We’ve even thrown in a lot of pictures. We hope that this makes you take a second look ...and a third and fourth look, too...and that it awakens an interest in you to learn more.” 

The opening paragraph of the first chapter gives the reader a taste of the cool language used in the book: “ A long, long time ago, before the invention of Facebook, the internet, mobile phones. and even color TV, your great x 5000 grandparents lived, hunted, made babies, worshipped, and buried their dead in what we now call our country, the Philippines. Back then, of course, it wasn’t the Philippines yet. It was a collection of volcanic islands, some connected by land bridges to mainland Asia and the Pacific Ocean.” 

The pictures are a collection of photographs, illustrations, cartoons and caricatures. The colored photos of relics from the National Museum are splendid. 

This is a book that will make every Filipino child aware and proud of their heritage. As the authors wrote about pre-colonial Philippines: “In more ways than one, our way of life, business and trade, worship, and cultural expression already met the criteria for ‘civilization’. So it was that life in these islands reached its pre-colonial cultural, political and economic peak.”

This is must book that should be found in every Filipino household and school library.

Si Kian Kuwento ni Weng D. Cahiles, Guhit ni Aidy C. Aguirre, Saliksik ni Kimberly B. Dela Cruz published by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism is the story of Kian Loyd delos Santos, 17-year-old student, who was killed by the police in Caloocan last August 16, 2017. Written in Fiipino, the slender book also includes sketches depicting the life of Kian. The opening page reads:

Katatapos lang ng unang araw ng exam nina Kian,

Siya lang ang naglalakad pauwi

Kasabay ang mga kaklaseng nakamotor at nakabisikleta

Sampung araw na lang, magkaka-bike na rin ako;

Sabi niya, umaasa sa pangako ng nanay na nasa Saudi.

Ang sabi kasi ni Nanay Elsa, 

Ipasa lang ni Kian ang exam ay magpapadala siya ng pambili ng bisikleta at helmet.

The next pages of the slim book tell different stories of Kian as a student, as a neighbour in Barangay 160, Caloocan and as a son. Then it describes the gory story of his murder, the grief of the family and the wake. 

Paos pero hindi tumitigil sa pagkukuwento si Nanay Elsa,

“ Kahit wala na akong boses, gagawin ko ng paraan 

Para ipagsigawang inosente ang anak ko.

This is the story of the 17-year-old Filipino student Kian.

Creative writing classes for kids and teens

Young Writers’ Hangout on August 4 & 18, September 1 & 15 (1:30 pm-3 pm; stand-alone sessions) at Fully Booked BGC. For details and registration contact 0945-2273216 or [email protected].

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