It was an interesting first MIBF (34th International Book Fair) for me. I was under the weather both figuratively and literally that day. But I don’t want to skip it and wait another year, so I decided to go along with my plan. When my sister and I arrived (like late afternoon), there were tons of people. So my tip for those who want to attend next time is to be sure to grab yourself some free tickets; you don’t want to be held back because of the long line at registration. If you have a ticket, you’ll be immediately ushered inside. And the inside is like a giant bookstore.

There are many participants on MIBF, some of whom I know and some of whom I haven’t even heard of. But it was cool to be exposed to different kinds of books, from local to international. Of course, the reason I came here is to find rare gems. Sadly, I didn’t get the chance to bring home the books that I wanted. It was probably already brought by someone, or it wasn’t even there (so I guess TBD is the only solution). I did find the book I wanted, but when I went to pay for it, there was like a long line, and I was only buying one book. I just don’t have the patience to wait (since, like I told you earlier, I’m not really feeling well that day), so I decided to leave it and check other booths.

What caught my attention was Precious Heart’s booth. Aside from having such a huge one, they also have book signings. I did know the authors, but I decided not to since I had just arrived and I was still feeling the environment a bit. When I returned, the signing was over, and since I don’t do the “crying over spilled milk,” I decided to check their stuff, and lo and behold, I saw interesting things: Tagalized books! Among them are Harry Potter, Fifty Shades of Gray, and Beautiful Disaster. I was really curious on how they translated it because I tried their Harlequin Mills & Boon and I wasn’t impressed (they tried to condense it, which sort of affected the flow of the story). But I think they are the same length as the original, so I’m guessing it is better than the ones I read. They also have graphic novels and children’s books! I didn’t know that they were such a large company.

I also saw Bookware Publishing, and they have tons of on sale pocketbooks. I love reading these for fun, so I grabbed a bunch, and the lady was so nice to have some of my books signed by the authors who were present at the event. They were so nice! Thanks.

You wouldn’t miss National Bookstore; they’re in the middle and almost the same size as a regular store. Yep, that huge! But there were so many people, and books were scattered all around. I kept bumping into other people, so I decided if I attend next time, I’ll go on a weekday and in the morning. I think the shelves are still organized, and since it is a work day, there are few people. Both NBS and Fullybooked were 20% off. Oh, and I loved FullyBooked’s booth; I love the publisher logo on top of the shelves. Oh, and the selection of books too.

Even though it wasn’t what I expected, it was still fun for me. I was super tired that day, so when I saw it was raining outside, we decided to call a cab and head home. Once I arrived, I took a nap. Yep, that’s how tired I was, but then again, it was fun!