WE are slowly moving away from the page at this day and age. The book, as we know it, is undergoing a digital transfer. The smell of paper and the intoxicating if not nostalgia-inducing waft of ink are now on the same page with their electronic counterparts. Tablets and e-book readers are proliferating at a fast rate as they provide a new orientation to the timeless act of reading. Still, the focus is on reading as it transcends the materials to where the text is. And our knack for reading also speaks for a desire of knowing ourselves as a nation.
The Manila International Literary Festival happens every year to celebrate the love for the word where writers and readers engage in lively discussion. Add groups who are concerned with the writing profession—literary agents, publishers, and educators— and you get a mix of individuals who are passionate about the growth of our literature set not just within the parameters of our country, but to the outside as well. It started as LOL: Lit Out Loud! in 2010, then The Great Philippine Book Café in 2011; this year’s installment welcomes readers and interested parties to the district where the pleasures of the text and other stimulating sensations could be availed of— the Read Lit District
Organized by the National Book Development Board (NBDB), a government agency that develops and supports the Philippine book publishing industry; this year’s festival is a highlight of the Philippine Book Development Month (PBDP). Some activities for this month-long affair include lectures, performances, literary tours, and book fairs. A fever will spread across Ayala Museum from November 14-16 where guests can literarily rub elbows with seasoned writers and have light moments with the young and upcoming. Above all, this will be an opportunity for others to discover and learn from the minds that produce the gems that could be found in the literary map of the Philippines. For three days, the museum will be a venue for those who are deeply invested with the state of our books and our attitude as readers. Events like the Read Lit District continue to remind us that there is still a lot of catching-up to do when it comes to reading. Sometimes we misread, but at least we are not alone on this one.
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