Filipino Librarian: Events

Showing posts with label Events. Show all posts

November is Book Development Month

Labels: Events

The Rizal Library is hosting the following events in cooperation with the National Book Development Board, Ateneo de Manila University Press, Filipino ReaderCon, and Kritika Kultura:

Saturday, November 9, 8:00AM-6:00PM

Filipino ReaderCon
What Do Readers Want?
Speakers: Ramon Bautista, Gerry Alanguilan, and more!
Registration fee: P150, inclusive of snacks and certificate

Wednesday, November 13, 8:00AM-5:30PM

4th Philippine International Literary Festival
Bestsellers and the City
Speakers: Peter Swirski, Manix Abrera, and more!
Registration fee: FREE, inclusive of snacks

Monday, November 18, 4:30PM-6:00PM

Kritika Kultura Literary Reading Series
Speakers: Joseph de Luna Saguid and Allan Pastrana

Thursday, November 28, 4:30PM-6:00PM

Harvest
The Ateneo de Manila University Press launches its titles for 2013.

For more information, please click on the links.

The 9/11 Memorial

Labels: Events

In 2006, I linked to a website (now defunct) that indicated that at least 15 individuals of Filipino descent died at the World Trade Center towers on 11 September 2001. In 2007, I linked the same names to obituaries that first appeared in the New York Times and other newspapers, even though evidence they were Filipino was not always clear. Since then, the inauguration of the 9/11 Memorial has made it possible to confirm that most of them were born in the Philippines, as well as identify other individuals not previously listed as Filipino.

Unless otherwise indicated, the basis for concluding that the 21 individuals named below were Filipino is the 9/11 Memorial.

Cesar Amoranto Alviar (NYT)
Marlyn Capito Bautista
Cecile Marella Caguicla
Grace Alegre Cua
Jayceryll Malabuyoc de Chavez

Benilda Pascua Domingo
Judy Hazel Santillan Fernandez
Ronald L. Gamboa
Ramon B. Grijalvo
Gerald Francis Hardacre

Frederick Kuo, Jr. (NYT)
Arnold Arboleda Lim (Filipino heritage remains unconfirmed)
Manuel L. Lopez, 54
Cynthia Motus-Wilson
Ruben S. Ornedo

Carl Allen B. Peralta, 37
Maria Theresa Concepcion Santillan (cousin of Judy Fernandez, probably Filipino)
Rufino C.F. Santos III
David Marc Sullins
Hilario Soriano Sumaya, Jr. (NYT)

Hector Rogan Tamayo

Please remember them and the others who died on 11 September 2001 in your prayers.

The Aswang Phenomenon

Labels: Books and Movies, Events

Happy Halloween!

The Aswang Phenomenon is the first in-depth documentary regarding the aswang myth - discovering where manifestations of the creature came from and how they evolved and embedded themselves in Filipino society. Learn how Filipinos have been transformed by the myth and are now evolving the aswang to fit into their developing cultural identity.

The YouTube video above features the full 77-minute documentary, not just a few minutes. If you would like to obtain a free copy of the DVD for your library, please email your mailing address (with information about your institution) to info-at-aswangmovie-dot-com.

The documentary is written and directed by Jordan Clark and features Maricel Soriano and Peque Gallaga.

LOL: Lit Out Loud!

Labels: Events

LOL: Lit Out Loud!
The 1st Manila International Literary Festival

In celebration of the 14th Philippine Book Development Month, the National Book Development Board, in partnership with the Filipinas Heritage Library, National Book Store and Philippine Airlines, will present the 1st Manila International Literary Festival.

In a three-day festival, LOL: Literature Out Loud will bring together a large community of writers and readers, students and teachers, as they face traditional and emerging concerns in literature. Together with local and international writers, publishing experts, teachers of literature, as well as followers of various genres of writing, the NBDB hopes to create a continuous dialogue on literature and reading.

Among the foreign writers who will attend the festival are Vikas Swarup, whose novel Q&A has been adapted into the Oscar award-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire; Christopher Cheng, who has published critically acclaimed books of fiction and nonfiction for young adults and children; Andy Mulligan, author of young adult novel Trash; literary agents Mita Kapur (also the author of the F-Word) and Jayapriya Vasudevan; and David Parker, the chair of the Man Asian Literary Prize.

The festival will begin with a keynote speech from Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., award-winning novelist. The many local writers also joing us include National Artists for Literature Virgilio S. Almario and Bienvenido Lumbera, Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo, Gemino H. Abad, Alfred Yuson, Resil Mojares, Marjorie Evasco, Ricky de Ungria, J. Neil Garcia, Isagani Cruz, Merlie Alunan, Criselda Yabes, Susan Lara, Angelo Lacuesta, Jr., Ralph Semino Galan, Tara FT Sering, and many more acclaimed Filipino writers will join the Festival.

Scheduled are several break-out sessions, with topics ranging from literary criticism to publishing will be discussed. The last afternoon of the festival will be dedicated to book and poetry readings, book signings, and book launches. Click on the image below to see the schedule.

LOL: Lit Out Loud! is also done in partnership with the Manila Bulletin, Filipinas Heritage Library, the Ayala Land, Inc., the Book Development Association of the Philippines, Central Books, Man Asian Literary Prize, Vibal Foundation, Random House, Simon and Schuster, and Siyahi Literary Agency.

To register, call 892-1801; for details, call 926-8238.

Christmas 2009

Labels: Events

Click on the play button below to listen to my favorite Christmas song:

I played this song for my students during the one year that I was a religion teacher (!) at an all-boys high school. At the end I asked them, "What was the one word that was never mentioned, but we all know that's what the song is about?" Can you figure it out? =)

An Evening in December
Artist: First Call

As I wait here on this evening in December,
I remember how it felt to be a child.
This old house still feels the same,
All the family will be here in just a while.

I hope daddy gets here first to build the fire.
He's the only one who has that special touch.
Then my sister with her kids,
And my grandma who I love so very much.

Chorus
Oh, I'm glad we'll be together
On this evening in December.
We'll watch the falling snow
And hold each other close.
I'm so glad we're here together
For an evening to remember,
On this night,
On this December night.

Sometimes out on the road it gets so lonely.
'Cause I miss those special people I hold dear.
Though our calendars are full,
At least for this one night we'll all be here.

How the children love this evening in December.
And while the smallest ones are playing on the floor,
There's a warmth I can't explain,
And I feel the love of those who've gone before.

Keep the fire burning here
Until we all come back next year.

Book Development Month 2009

Labels: Books and Movies, Events

"Galing Pinoy, Basahin!" is the theme of this year's celebration of Philippine Book Development Month (PBDM). The Tagalog word "galing" may be pronounced two ways and has two different meanings. The first may be translated as "talent," while the second, "from." Thus, the theme could be "Read Pinoy Talent!" or "Read [Books] From Pinoys!" There's more information about the different activities being held, including the awarding ceremonies for the National Book Awards, on the website of the National Book Development Board (NBDB).

But actually, PBDM is not the only thing happening in November. Long before PBDM was moved from June to November to coincide with National Book Week (NBW), it was already Library and Information Services Month (LISM). Unlike PBDM, however, there doesn't really seem to be any central location where information about NBW or LISM can be found easily. The National Library's website has been down more than it's been up since I first thought of becoming a librarian in 2002, and while the fact that it has a wiki is encouraging, it doesn't really provide much useful information beyond address, contact numbers and library hours. Is it really that hard to get a website to work or update a wiki? The Quezon City Public Library, in contrast, provides a list of events for all its branches, branch locations with maps, and even regular newsletters.

Other events taking place in November are the following:

National Conference, Philippine Association of Academic and Research Librarians - Pasig City, 11-13 November 2009

National Conference, Reading Association of the Philippines - Dagupan City, Pangasinan, 12-14 November 2009 [postponed]

National Congress, Philippine Librarians Association - Pasay City, 25-27 November 2009

It seems rather odd that while the sponsor of the first event actually has its own website and wiki, information about the event is circulating only via email, and so questions get asked and requests are made over and over again. The sponsors of the other two events, meanwhile, do not even seem to have their own websites, and details are just disseminated through the kindness of interested parties.

This post was really just supposed to be an announcement about important events taking place in November, but I just couldn't help letting out some of the disappointment I'm feeling about the way these events are being publicized. NBDB has gotten much savvier at promoting its activities since I first blogged about its website, but all the others seem to be pretty much where they were before. Finally, there's what I wrote last year in Book Development Month 2008: "It is rather unfortunate, however, that there does not seem to be much evidence of synergy or cooperation between the different groups behind PBDM and NBW/LISM." Not much, it seems, has changed since then.

Thanksgiving 2009

Labels: About Filipino Librarian, About Vonjobi, Events

Thanksgiving is known as an American holiday, and is still a few weeks away, but Canadians have their own day for thanksgiving, today. I'd be celebrating this holiday with Canadians in their own country, except I'm now on a bus on my way to Chicago to do even more research... and meet a friend =)

I'd like to thank my loyal and occasional readers for inspiring me to keep this blog going. What do I get out of it? Well, I do earn some money from those who click on the ads, but more importantly, blogging forces me to keep up with what's going on in Philippine librarianship. There's also the added satisfaction of seeing a comment every now and then thanking me for a post that I wrote... or even having a post cited on GMA News!

And then there are Filipino librarians like Jay dela Cruz, who surprised me recently by sending a new header for my blog out of the blue. Yes, it's the one up right now. Thanks, Jay!

Update as of 14 October 2009:

In case some of you are interested in seeing the evolution of this blog's header, here are all of them:

February 2005

March 2009

October 2009

“How to improve performance
in the licensure examination”

Labels: About Vonjobi, Events

That's the title of the forum for which I'll be one of the panelists at the National Conference on Library and Information Science Education at the Ortigas Foundation Library on 13 and 14 April 2009. The event is sponsored by the Philippine Association of Teachers of Library and Information Science (PATLS), but the intended audience is not limited to teachers. Students and graduates of library schools, as well as librarians and library support staff, are encouraged to participate. The conference fee (P2,500) might be a bit steep for students, but maybe the powers that be can still be persuaded to charge a lower fee for students =)

Anyway, I hope some of the readers of this blog will be there, so we can take a group photo. It's the last time I'll be a speaker at a conference in the Philippines this year...

UP FLIPP's LibSpeak ’09

Labels: About Vonjobi, Events

UP's Future Library and Information Professionals of the Philippines (FLIPP) is inviting everyone to attend "LibSpeak ’09: Inculcate, Integrate, Innovate" at UP Diliman's Balay Kalinaw, on Monday, 23 February 2009, 8am-5pm. Admission is FREE.

The morning will feature presentations by two blograrians: "The Road Less Taken: The Future of LIS Graduates" (me!) and "Blog It!: Impact of the Blogging Phenomenon to the Field of Library and Information Science" (Zarah Gagatiga). These will be followed in the afternoon by the Junior LIS Wizard Contest for high school students.

The schedule looks like there will be time for the followers of Zarah's blog and mine to get together for lunch. See you all there!

"Babala" by Alfred A. Yuson

Labels: Events

The video above was taken at the launch of the latest publications of the National Book Development Board (NBDB). It features Alfred A. Yuson reading his poem "Babala," which was published in Train of Thought: Poems from Tulaan sa Tren, one of NBDB's new books. Tulaan sa Tren (poetry on the train), incidentally, is the project that made it possible for LRT riders to hear award-winning poems on the way to their destinations. Listen to the poems written by Jose Corazon de Jesus, Rio Alma and Benilda Santos, as read by Romnick Sarmenta, Matt Evans and Lyn Ching-Pascual.

The video was recorded by this blograrian—and the poem is reprinted below—with Yuson's permission.

Babala
Alfred A. Yuson

Ingat lang habang nasa bayan ka namin.
Sobra kaming masaya, baka di mo ma-teyk
kung bakit kahit gutom ang ilan-ilan dyan
ay nagvi-videoke pa rin ang karamihan.

O kapag may napapaslang na sinuman
ay telenobelang Koreano pa rin
ang pinag-uukulan ng panahon.
Short time sa motel, pata tim, lechong kawali,
leche flang buo o sa halo-halo, may ube
ice cream pa — yan ang mga nakahihiligan
sa kama o papag, hapag o dulang, hanggang
maduling sa kalandian at kabusugan.

Wala raw namamatay sa gutom sa aming bayan.
Magtapon ka lang ng kahit anong buto
sa labas ng bintana, at ito’y uusbong
at ilang tulog lamang ay may maitutulak na
sa kalunggaan ng iyong bunganga.

Ganyan na nga ang lagay dito sa’ming paraiso.
Kay sarap, kay sarap, kay dali, kay dali,
kaya nga ba madami kaming abogado
at politiko. Sila na’ng bahala
na pag-alaberdehin kaming lahat
na mga bata batuta.

Ingat lang sa aming bayan. Oy, turista!
Ingat lang. Baka mapamahal ka,
baka di magkamayaw sa kasasayaw
ang iyong pananalig sa puting isla,
sa linaw ng tubig, gaan ng karagatan.
Malunod man ang libu-libo sa malagim
na sakuna, kunwari’y wala kaming nadidinig
kundi patalbugan ng itlog ng mga matsing,
batbatan ng trumpo, liksi ng dakilang patotot
sa larong patintero, husay ng pagsipa
sa tumbang preso, at doktor-doktoran,
bahay-bahayan, tulad ng mga gawain
ng mga mistulang bayani ng bayan.

Ingat, 'Igan. Ingat.

Book Development Month 2008

Labels: Books and Movies, Events

Click on the poster to read the schedule of activities.

"Read Pinoy!" is the theme of this year's celebration of Philippine Book Development Month (PBDM), which has been moved from June to November to coincide with National Book Week (NBW). Check out the new, much improved website of the National Book Development Board (NBDB) for more information about BDM. See the PLAI-CVRLC blog for more about the NBW contests on the theme "Ang Batang Palabasa Dalubhasa sa Kultura," which sounds good but doesn't quite make sense in English (The child who reads a lot is an expert on culture). November is also Library and Information Services Month (LISM). For a list of all activities related to LISM, please visit the PLAI-STRLC blog.

It is rather unfortunate, however, that there does not seem to be much evidence of synergy or cooperation between the different groups behind PBDM and NBW/LISM. It is also quite revealing that while the themes of the different activities occasionally use Tagalog words, all the promotional materials are primarily in English, which suggests that the activities are focused on English books and directed to Filipinos who can read English. Not that there's anything wrong with that (this blog, after all, is written in English), but when the adjectives "Philippine" and "National" are used with the word "Book," it implies that books in all Philippine languages—not just English—are part of the activities. Then again, government documents are primarily in English and the medium of instruction in public schools is English. Maybe it's a chicken-or-egg problem. But that's another post altogether.

Open Access Day 2008

Labels: Events

"What is an 'open access journal'? Short answer: it's available online and it's free. Longer answer: 'A Very Brief Introduction to Open Access' by Peter Suber."

There is, of course, more to it than the short answer (such as peer review), but that's what I wrote more than three years ago in a post about the "Directory of Open Access Journals." It's really encouraging to note that the open access movement has taken off in the Philippines, so that from merely blogging about Filipino journals available-for-free-online-but-not-necessarily-open-access in 2005, I am now able to blog about honest-to-goodness Filipino "Open Access Journals," especially "Philippine Studies," whose archives of full-text, peer-reviewed articles now go back to 1970.

I first learned about open access when John Willinsky came to the Philippines and delivered a lecture about it when I was still an MLIS student. I was also then assistant editor for Landas, and realized just how much it would help Philippine journals if they adopted the open access model. In "Open Access in the Third World," I summarized why open access mattered to me and, more importantly, why it should matter to Filipino publishers of scholarly journals:

I have worked on print and online publications, and while the time required to edit articles is the same for both, those published online do not have to contend with printing press schedules or deal with printing and mailing costs. And the publication is immediately available and will eventually be searchable through search engines.

As the years passed, I learned more about open access at conferences and blogged about "DSpace and EPrints," "Open Access and Online Communities" and the "Scholarly Information Infrastructure." This led me to the realization that government-funded research, especially those related to science and medicine, should be published not in for-profit journals, but those that are freely available. After all, if it's our taxes that paid for the research, why should we have to pay to read the results? Privately-funded research, incidentally, should be freely available, too—even with certain restrictions—because scholars and scientists don't conduct research so that only those who can pay for the journals will read their articles, but so that the whole of humanity can benefit from their findings.

My belief in open access as the necessary next step for scholarly journals and Third World libraries convinced me to join the board of Library Student Journal, an open access journal, and make sure that I mentioned open access whenever I was invited to speak to Filipino librarians (see "Research in Librarianship" and "Filipiniana Online").

If you're still with me at this point, you should probably know that I've provided links to just about all the posts I've written about open access as a way of showing how I've been supporting open access—and how you can do it, too, by blogging about the movement!—for more than three years now... and that there's a "Synchroblogging competition" for Open Access Day. Wish me luck!

Here's a video of a librarian talking about the benefits of open access:

Diane Graves, Librarian, from Open Access Videos on Vimeo.

1st LibraryLink Conference: Connect to Evolve!

Labels: About Vonjobi, Events

Click on the image above to read the text.

When I posted the announcement regarding the "1st LibraryLink Conference," I thought that it would be an interesting event to attend. But since I knew by then that I was going to be at four conferences (presenting at three of them) in four different countries on three continents, and flying across two oceans in less than two months—whew!—I also knew that I wouldn't have any money to pay for the registration fee for a fifth conference.

Then I met one of the organizers... and got invited to be a speaker! For only the second time in my very short "career" as an invited speaker—this time right before the Board for Librarians (last time, I preceded the Director of the National Library)—I'll be talking about leadership. So check out the program (pdf), and see if it's something that will be helpful to you. The image above, incidentally, shows the only men making presentations at the 3-day, 12-speaker event. Here's hoping we won't be the only men there =)

Public Lectures by Three Filipino PhD Students

Labels: About Vonjobi, Events

Ricardo Punzalan Paolo Manalo Vernon Totanes

Just in case you're a regular reader of this blog and didn't know it, this blogger is, in fact, in the Philippines at this time. (Alternatively, if the opposite is true and you thought I've always been in the Philippines, you should know that I've been based in Toronto for most of the past two years.)

Anyway, consider this post an invitation to attend the lectures to be delivered by three PhD students who just happened to be in town at the same time. And just in case you're wondering about the photos above, those are our current profile pictures on Facebook, where a page has been set up so that people who have Facebook accounts can RSVP. You may also read the official announcement below.

The
School of Library and Information Studies
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN

invites everyone to the lectures

VISUALIZING LEPROSY
ARCHIVES, LEPROSY AND COLLECTIVE MEMORY
by
Ricardo Punzalan
Ph.D. Student, University of Michigan School of Information
Assistant Professor, University of the Philippines

WHAT DOES IT MEME?
SPAM, ONLINE QUIZZES AND THE LAST SONG SYNDROME
COGNITIVE POETICS AND USELESS INFORMATION
by
Paolo Manalo
Ph.D. Student, University of St Andrews School of English
Assistant Professor, University of the Philippines

WHAT WAS THE FIRST BOOK PRINTED IN THE PHILIPPINES?
by
Vernon Totanes
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto Faculty of Information Studies

on

14 August 2008 (Thursday)
9:00 a.m.
at the
SLIS Rooms 3 & 4
3rd Floor, Gonzalez Hall
(UP Main Library)

Deadline for Nominations
for 2008 National Book Awards

Labels: Books and Movies, Events

The deadline for submission of nominations for the 2008 National Book Awards is 30 April 2008. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, this information has not been widely disseminated. I am, therefore, reproducing the guidelines from the Manila Critics Circle (MCC) and the National Book Development Board (NBDB) below.

This is the first time that MCC and NBDB are teaming up, and there are a few things that must be noted:

1. Nominations must be submitted to the Accreditation and Incentives Division of the NBDB.
2. Only books published by NBDB-registered publishers or have ISBNs may be nominated.
3. Only those books with ISBNs may qualify for a National Book Award.

Based on my limited understanding of the guidelines, it seems that a book without an ISBN may be nominated as long as its publisher is registered with NBDB, but it will not be eligible for an award. It seems, therefore, that if you're planning to nominate a book, you better make sure it has an ISBN, otherwise, it will be a wasted effort even if its publisher is registered with the NBDB.

By the way, it seems strange that there is nothing in the guidelines that indicates that the book should have been published between 1 January and 31 December 2007. But I suppose that's what those who drafted the document meant.

National Book Awards

I. General rules

A. The Board of Judges

1. Every year, the Board of Judges (BOJ) of the National Book Awards shall be composed of:
a. Five (5) members of the Manila Critics Circle (MCC) to be designated by MCC; and
b. One (1) judge nominated by the National Book Development Board (NBDB).
2. There will be two divisions: literary and non-literary.

3. There shall be the same members of the BOJ from the MCC for both the literary and non-literary divisions. The NBDB, however, reserves the right to nominate a different judge for each category within any division, depending on the expertise of the chosen judge.

4. Books of members of the MCC are disqualified from winning any award for any category in any division. Likewise, the books of the NBDB-nominated judge shall be disqualified for the category s/he is judging.

5. Each member of the BOJ is entitled to one (1) vote. A vote must be explained verbally during the voting process, taking into consideration factors that determine the quality of the title.

6. A title in all categories of both divisions must be voted upon unanimously by every member of the BOJ to win.

7. Meetings of the BOJ shall be held at the NBDB Conference Room or at any designated place agreed upon beforehand by the members of the BOJ.

8. Minutes of every meeting by the BOJ shall be taken by a member of the NBDB Secretariat, who shall keep the minutes in a confidential file within the premises of the NBDB.

9. The BOJ shall make a list of finalists numbering five (5) titles at most per category, from which the winners of each category are determined. A winner for each category must be determined by September 30, 2008.

B. Submissions

1. A letter nominating the titles, accompanied by an initial two (2) copies of the books, must be submitted to the Accreditation and Incentives Division (AID) of the NBDB at the
2/F National Printing Office Building,
EDSA corner NIA Northside Road,
Diliman, Quezon City 1100
2. Only publishers registered with the NBDB will be allowed to nominate their titles. If the titles are nominated by a literary organization, a university department, or a professional organization, such titles must be published by an NBDB-registered publisher. Only those entities whose main activity is not publishing but publish books from time to time as an auxiliary activity to their main business or activity are exempt from registration requirement; provided, however, their published titles have an ISBN.

3. Nominations without the accompanying initial 2 books will not be considered at all.

4. Only those books with ISBNs may qualify for a National Book Award.

5. The deadline for the submission of all nominations is at noon of April 30, 2008.

6. All books submitted to the NBDB for consideration in the National Book Awards become the property of the NBDB.

C. Announcement of finalists and winners

1. Winners shall be announced only during the awarding ceremonies.

2. All decisions of the BOJ are final.

3. Finalists in all categories will be invited to the awarding ceremonies to be scheduled on a date within Philippine Book Development Month, and at a place to be determined by the NBDB.

II. Literary Titles

A. Nomination and Judging

1. Any publisher registered with the National Book Development Board (NBDB) may nominate a literary title, published in the previous year, by sending a letter of nomination and by submitting an initial two (2) copies of that title for consideration of the judges in the following categories, in English, Filipino, or any other language:
a. Novel;
b. Poetry;
c. Essay;
d. Creative Non-Fiction;
e. Literary Criticism;
f. Short Fiction;
g. Drama;
h. Graphic Novel;
i. Children’s Fiction;
j. Children’s Poetry;
k. Other genres as may be determined by the Board of Judges (BOJ).
2. The NBDB will forward these nominations to a chosen literary organization registered with the National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA) for prescreening. Nominated titles for different categories may not necessarily be given to one literary organization. The NBDB reserves the right to choose the literary organizations for each category, subject to the approval of the Chair of the NBDB Governing Board. The literary organizations will be given thirty (30) days from receipt of the nominated titles to come up with a short list.

3. Literary organizations registered with the NCCA may nominate titles to the NBDB, which shall not go through a prescreening process as long as the nomination is signed by the head of the organization.

4. The members of the MCC also reserve the right to nominate titles for the consideration of the BOJ, provided none of the titles nominated by them, or by any publisher, or literary organization, are authored by any member of the MCC. Consequently, any title authored by any member of the MCC is automatically disqualified from winning.

5. Publishers of titles submitted for prescreening and short-listed by these literary organizations, or nominated by the MCC or by a NCCA- registered literary organization, shall be informed in writing that their titles have been short-listed, and shall be required to submit an additional six (6) copies of the books to the NBDB. Non-submission of the required copies will disqualify the title from consideration by the BOJ.

6. The chosen NCCA-registered literary organization shall submit to the NBDB a short list of the nominated titles, judging only the literary merits of the books without going into other aspects of the books, and without ranking them.

7. The literary organizations will be given thirty (30) days from receipt of the books to submit a short list of the titles to the NBDB. Should there be no short list given by the literary organization within the given period, all nominated books will be forwarded to the BOJ, unless otherwise disqualified.

8. The NBDB shall inform the BOJ no later than June 30, 2008, that the books to be the subject of final judging are ready for pick up at the NBDB office.

III. Non-literary Titles

A. Nomination and Judging

1. Any NBDB-registered publisher, professional organization, or university department may nominate a title published in the previous year, by submitting a letter of nomination. Publishers who nominate their titles must also submit two (2) initial copies of that title for consideration of the judges in the following categories:
a. Sciences;
b. Social Sciences;
c. Humanities;
d. Professions;
e. Reference;
f. Other categories as may be determined by the BOJ.
2. Non-literary titles nominated directly by an NBDB-registered publisher shall be submitted by the NBDB to a professional organization or a university department in the field the nominated title belongs to. Such professional organization or university department shall be approved by the Chair of the NBDB’s Governing Board.

3. The professional organization or university department shall short list the titles bearing in mind the following:
a. This prescreening is limited only to judging the soundness of the contents of the book;
b. They are given thirty (30) days to evaluate the book from the time of receipt of the books;
c. Upon passing the prescreening process, the title shall be passed on to the BOJ, for regular judging.
4. A title that has been rejected by the prescreening professional organization or university department shall no longer be submitted to the BOJ for judging. However, the BOJ will be notified in writing by the NBDB Secretariat that such a title was prescreened by a particular organization or university department, and did not pass the pre- screening process.

5. If a short-listed title was nominated by an NBDB-registered publisher, the NBDB shall inform such publisher accordingly, and shall be required to submit an additional six (6) copies to the NBDB for submission to the BOJ.

6. If a title was nominated by a professional organization or university department, the title shall no longer go through a prescreening process. However, the publisher of such title will be informed that its title has been nominated by a professional organization or university department, without naming the organization or department, and such publisher shall be required to submit seven (7) copies of that title for the BOJ: six (6) for the BOJ, and one extra copy for the NBDB library.

7. Professional organizations that submit titles for consideration must also submit a copy of their SEC registration to the NBDB.

8. Submissions by university departments must contain the signature of the head of the department, or an authorized department representative as designated by the dean of the college or the university president.

9. Only titles prescreened by a chosen professional organization or university department, when nominated by a publisher, or directly nominated by a professional organization or a university department may be considered by the BOJ.

Singles' Awareness Day

Labels: Events, Humor

The poster above by Alan V may be dated, but I say it's timeless. It used to be that I was just a member of Samahan ng Atenistang Walang Iniibig (SAWI), but now I think it's so much more comforting that there's actually an official Singles' Awareness Day (SAD).

For more information, see the "official" Singles' Awareness website and the Singles Awareness Day entry on Wikipedia. If you would like to celebrate it yourself, you may wish to attend some of the seminars listed below (based on another blogger's list):

1. The Basics of Cross-Stitching
2. Advanced Cross-Stitching (Single Since Birth Only)
3. Speed-Dating for Dummies
4. Surviving Weddings and Other Family Gatherings

I don't really know where I'll be on February 14, but I don't think I'll be blogging. So advanced Happy SAD! =)

2007: Year in Review

Labels: About Filipino Librarian, Events

This post is a pseudo-review of what I've written about during the past year. It's not really about me, but for the benefit of those who are new to the blog, I should probably say that I was in Manila (see "Home") from August to December 2007, but am now back in Toronto, where I am studying for my PhD.

The idea for this review appeared in my first post for 2007, which you can read below. What I wrote about the review then still applies:

What follows is not exactly the "first paragraph/sentence" of each post... but it's probably better this way. Interestingly, the posts seem to be fairly representative of what this blog is all about.

January: 2006: Year in Review

From The Anglophile's Rest via RSS feed to p. manalo: "Go to your Calendar and find the first entry for each month of 2006 (not including memes of course). Post the first paragraph/sentence of it in your journal, and that's your 'Year in Review'."

Cory Doctorow was introduced as an editor of Boing Boing, a science fiction novelist whose works can be downloaded via Craphound.com and is one of Forbes.com's Web Celeb 25.

March: Reading Inspires Kids

Chapters Indigo is a Canadian bookstore, but believe it or not, I found out about the advertisement above through Filipino bloggers Gelo and Tobie.

April: Gmail Paper... Happy April Fools' Day!

If Gmail Paper sounds too good—and outlandish—to be true, then it probably is.

May: Pinoy Top Blogs: April 2007

The gains made last March by the Top 50 Pinoy Top Blogs (PTB) were sustained in April.

June: Pinoy Big Biblioblogosphere: May 2007

Do you remember why you became a librarian? Or how you got your first job as one?

July: The First Books Printed in the Philippines

Two books were printed in the Philippines in 1593, but it is unclear which one was printed first.

August: Buwan ng Wika 2007

Supposedly, Filipino is the national language of the Philippines, but if you speak a language spoken in the Philippines other than Tagalog, you are probably unlikely to accept that Filipino (the language) is Tagalog (and it's not).

September: Bookfair 2007: OMF Lit Package

The photos above are of the package I was given by Yna Reyes, publication director of OMF Literature.

October: Coming Soon: Carnival of the Infosciences 81

The Carnival of the Infosciences (COTI) crossed the Pacific Ocean recently and is now up Down Under at Connecting Librarian. On October 15, the Carnival moves to this blog, and I will try to give our foreign guests a taste of Filipino hospitality.

November: Librarian Promotes Reading

From "Storytellers reach, touch hearts of kids" by Ma. Cecilia Rodriguez (Philippine Daily Inquirer, 4 November 2007): "'We are still trying to solicit more (reading materials),' librarian Arlene de Guma said."

December: What Have I Learned as an IFLA/OCLC Fellow? by Alice Esguerra

The author (left), the first Filipino librarian to become an IFLA/OCLC fellow, shares her reflections on her experience.

National Book Week 2007

Labels: Events

This year, National Book Week will be celebrated from November 26-30. The theme is "Family Literacy: Reading Begins with Us." Below are the activities scheduled for the week, followed by the programs for the Opening Ceremonies (November 26) and the Fellowship Luncheon (November 30).

Thanks to Susan Pador for the information.

ACTIVITIES

November 26

7:00 a.m.
Opening Ceremonies / Fun Walk / Book Character Parade
Venue: The National Library

1:00 p.m.
PATLS: LIS Wizard
Venue: Bulwagang E. de los Santos
The National Library

November 27

8:00–12:00
PAARL: Forum
Theme: Strengthening Interpersonal Skills & Service Attitudes Competencies for Library Staff
Venue: San Beda College

8:00–5:00
CLAPI Outreach Program: Storytelling / Book Giving / Puppet Show
Venue: Payatas, Quezon City

November 28–29

PPLLI: Seminar-Workshop
Theme: Public Librarians: Their Accountability in a Changing Library Environment
Venue: Bulwagang E. de los Santos
The National Library

November 30

10:00 a.m.
Fellowship Luncheon
Venue: Kamay Kainan, Trinoma, Quezon City

OPENING PROGRAMME
Venue: The National Library
November 26, 2007

Part I

7:00 A.M.
NBW FUN WALK AND BOOK CHARACTER PARADE
Assembly: The National Library Grounds

10:00 A.M.
Holy Mass
FR. PAUL MA. M. DE VERA, O.S.B.
Celebrant

Part II

11:00 A.M. OPENING PROGRAM
Venue: Bulwagang Epifanio de los Santos

National Anthem
The National Library Choir

Words of Welcome
MRS. PRUDENCIANA C. CRUZ
Director, The National Library

Opening Remarks
MRS. SUSIMA L. GONZALES
President, PLAI

Introduction of the Guest Speaker
MRS. REBECCA M. JOCSON
Chief Librarian, PLM

Keynote Address
ATTY. ADEL A. TAMANO
President, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

Intermission
The National Library Choir

Announcement of Contest Winners
MRS. FE E. ABELARDO
Chair, Special Projects Committee

Awarding of Winners
ATTY. ADEL A. TAMANO
MRS. PRUDENCIANA C. CRUZ
MRS. SUSIMA L. GONZALES

Closing Remarks
MISS BELEN M. VIBAR
Chair, 2007 Overall Co-Chair

MRS. SALVACION M. ARLANTE
Trustee, PLAI
Master of Ceremonies

FELLOWSHIP LUNCHEON
Venue: Kamay Kainan, Trinoma, Quezon City
November 26, 2007

9:30 a.m. REGISTRATION
10:30 a.m. PROGRAMME

Invocation & Blessing of the Food
FR. ANGEL APARICIO, O.P.
Prefect of Libraries, UST

National Anthem
MRS. FE E. ABELARDO
Chair, Special Projects Committee

Words of Welcome
MRS. SUSIMA L. GONZALES
President, PLAI

Introduction of the Guest Speaker
MRS. TERESITA C. MORAN
Chief Librarian, APS

Inspirational Message
PROF. CORAZON M. NERA
Chair, Board for Librarians

Intermission
MR. GIGI RENEGADO
Rizal Library, ADMU

Presentation of Awards
PROF. THELMA KIM
Chair, PLAI Awards Committee
MRS. MILAGROS S. ONG
Chair, NBW Awards Committee

Induction of PLAI NCR Librarians Council
PROF. CORAZON M. NERA
Inducting Officer

Closing Remarks
MISS BELEN M. VIBAR
Chair, 2007 Overall Co-Chair

MRS. REBECCA M. JOCSON
Chief Librarian, PLM
Master of Ceremonies

Filipiniana Online:
From the Speaker's Point of View

Labels: About Vonjobi, Events

The photos above were taken right before I began my presentation on Filipiniana Online at the 3rd Rizal Library International Conference last 23 October 2007. Thanks to Michael Stephens for the idea that the audience deserves to have their photos taken by the speaker =)

Note: Click on the photos to see the larger versions.

Butch Dalisay on Creative Writing

Labels: Events

The video above was taken at the National Book Development Board's monthly book club meeting, held at Mag:net Cafe Katipunan yesterday. The featured author was Butch Dalisay, multi-awarded author of books, plays and screenplays, who spoke about writing short stories with no grand designs, but small challenges like starting with one sentence and seeing where the story goes. Dalisay blogs (!) at Pinoy Penman, and was the lone Filipino longlisted for the first-ever Man Asian Literary Prize. Only five of the 23 authors on the long list will make it to the short list to be announced on 25 October 2007. Here's hoping he wins the Prize when it's announced in Hong Kong next month.

Personal impressions: I am not very literary, so it was only when he enumerated some of the screenplays he wrote that I realized that I was "familiar" with his work (e.g., Maging Akin Ka Lamang!). And I was surprised when he shared that he wrote the dialogue for his screenplays in Tagalog, but everything else was in English. The fact that he finished his long-delayed novel in a week because of the Prize deadline gave me hope that I can meet my dissertation deadlines, too. His story about his greatest find—a 1926 fountain pen with gold nib—which was probably worth $500, but for which he was willing to pay P5,000 at a stall in Greenhills, and which the clueless seller sold for P500, reminded me of my recent "quest" to find a few not-so-old-but-hard-to-find-outside-a-library books. I haven't gotten quite as lucky, but... that's another post =)