IN THE age of digital media and online publication, here comes an event that highlights the importance of printed books to inspire the young ones and the forever young to love reading.
Big Bad Wolf is coming to Cebu on July 13 to 23 and promises to be the biggest book sale in the country selling over one million books at the IEC Convention Center.
Yes, bring along Grandmother and Little Red Riding Hood because this wolf won’t swallow you whole with exorbitant entrance fees or high-priced merchandize.
Instead, Miguel Mercado, head of marketing of Big Bad Wolf Philippines, said a variety of books across diverse genres will be sold at 60 percent to 80 percent off regular prices.
These genres include cookbooks, biographies, business books, non-fiction and fiction bestsellers, young adult fiction and an extensive collections of children’s books.
Mercado said it is their mission to make books affordable and available to all.
Big Bad Wolf Book Sale is the brainchild of BookXcess founders Andrew Yap and Jacqueline Ng and has been a landmark event in Malaysia since 2009.
It has extended its footprint across cities in Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and the Philippines.
Why the confidence to open a book sale when the world is going digital?
Mercado said Cebuanos demanded for it.
Two days after they announced that they are coming to Cebu, Mercado said the post reached 800,000 individuals—and the following just kept growing.
More importantly, Mercado said there is a need to emphasize the relevance of reading books to raise critical and creative citizens.
“In the age of fake news, we need to develop critical and creative thinking skills so we can discern what is real and not. Reading gives you that power,” he said.
Mercado and his team also believe that physical books offer the pleasurable experience of touching a book and flipping through its pages. which no e-book can provide.
“Physical books are here to stay as they stimulate deep reading and engage readers more. Reading a physical book encourages the reader to focus on what is infront of him,” he told Cebu Daily News in a one-on-one conversation after the press conference last June 14.
The 24/7 Cebu City Public Library (CCPL) was also a come-on for the organizer to bring Big Bad Wolf Books to Cebu, according to Mercado.
The timing is also perfect as the Cebu Literary Festival will be held in July.
Non-government organization, Basadours Inc., composed of storytellers and literary/literacy advocates, are holding back-to-back book drives and storytelling sessions whole-year round.
CCPL is also rolling out Basa Kabataan which brings together the Friends of the Library to engage in various literacy and book-inspired initiatives.
A portion of the proceeds from the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale will benefit programs of Gawad Kalinga.
Toby Florendo, Cebu provincial head of Gawad Kalinga, said books and reading allow people to reach their potentials and the presence of Big Bad Wolf gives all communities in the Visayas opportunities to maximize their skills and talents.
Cebuanos will be given several opportunities to explore the book-filled IEC Convention Center as the book sale will run for 10 days.
No two visits are the same as the organizers have their shelves full and ready for book-hungry Cebuanos.
The Big Bad Wolf is coming to Cebu and the only thing you should be concerned about is how thick your wallet is to pay for all those books.