DAVAO CITY – Hundreds of Dabawenyos dug into their favorite children’s tales and the wide array of bestselling fiction and non-fiction titles at the Big Bad Wolf (BBW) book sale opening at The Tent of Azuela Cove in Lanang here Thursday afternoon.
People beamed upon seeing the prices, which were marked down by as much as 90 percent. Novels, for instance, could be bought at half the price compared to other bookstores.
In her message read by Vice Mayor Bernard Al-ag, Mayor Inday Sara Z. Duterte said the book sale is timely as the city begins celebrating the Christmas season.
“For what better gift to give our children and loved ones, even ourselves, than the joy of reading,” she said.
Mayor Sara said books serve as portals to the different realms of our imagination — from wonderlands to treasure islands, from the heart of the sea to the farthest reaches of the galaxy.
“Reliving a legend’s past in a biography, playing detective in a mystery, or discovering new details about our nation’s history, books invite us to live in other worlds and encounter experiences that ignite a gamut of emotions in us,” she said.
Aside from improving one’s reading comprehension and vocabulary, Mayor Sara said literature also opens people’s minds to endless possibilities, “whether we are poring over a work of fiction and non-fiction, poetry or prose teaching us about the world and about ourselves in the process.”
She lauded the Big Bad Wolf book sale, saying the proceeds will fund Gawad Kalinga’s (GK) outreach programs.
Public Library
The BBW said it will open a 24-hour public library in this city in 2019, the first in the Philippines. This will complement the city government’s existing City Library and the Mobile Library, which go to far-flung areas to assist children in terms of research.
Al-ag said the opening of the public library is significant as the city aims to increase readership and children’s reading comprehension.
“With the 24-hour public library, Dabawenyos will now have a place to spend their time reading,” the vice mayor said.
Al-ag, together with 2nd District Rep. Mylene Garcia-Albano, BBW founder Andrew Yap, Gawad Kalinga Executive Director Luis Oquineña, and the MVMi CEO Mari Oquineña, led the opening of the book sale.
Yap was grateful for the success of the first day of the book sale, which will be open 24 hours until December 2.
GK executive director Luis Oquineña said that under the project, shoppers can purchase and donate books to Gawad Kalinga.
Oquineña said the partnership with BBW goes beyond the book sale “because we will be building 20 more libraries across Mindanao and the Visayas.”
BBW has brought one million books and non-fiction titles, including rare collections, across various genres.
