MANILA, Philippines - Lovers of children’s books have cause to rejoice! The National Book Development Board (NBDB) and the Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY) are happy to announce the fulfillment of a long-cherished dream. The Philippines now has a National Children’s Book Award. The new award will raise the bar for children’s literature in the country. So the NBDB and the PPBY call on all children’s book publishers, authors, and illustrators to submit their nominations for the “1st National Children’s Book Awards: best Reads for 2010.” The Award is open to all locally-published children’s books authored by a Filipino and published in 2008 and 2009. For the complete rules and guidelines, go to www.nbdb.gov.ph. Today, April 15 is deadline for submission of nominations.