lang.
Siguro noong HS ako nang una kong nalaman ang storya ng buhay ni Nanay Coring sa isang artikulong nabasa ko sa Philippine Daily Inquirer Mahilig kasi ako magbasa ng dyaryo nung bata ata hanggang hayskul kaya hindi na bago sa akin ang kwento nya.
As usual maganda ang illustration, mas nagagandahan ako sa illustration ng isang storybook kapag cutout papers ang medium, Lumalabas ang pagkacreative ng isang gawa, Kaso nga lang napansin ko sa binabasa, masyado atang mahaba para sa mga bata, Medyo teknikal ang pagkakasulat. Sa matatanda gaya ko na nakakabasa neto okay na okay pero sa mga bata, parang hindi kaya masyadong wordy Anupaman, maramign mapupulot na aral ang mga bata sa sa pagbabasa ng kwento ng buhay ni nanay Coring: Sipag, pananampalataya sa Diyos at pagbangon sa mga nadaraanang pagsubok.
Socorro Ramos, known as Nanay Coring, is the founder of National Book Store, the largest bookstore chain in the Philippines,
She has many grandchildren and greatgrandchildren,
She loves to read and learn,
But Nanay Coring was once so poor she could not afford to go to school, She went through many hard times, including the Second World War,
This is the story of how a young girl with no money learned to work hard, to survive the bad times till they became good again, to live and to love, and to never stop dreaming.
I love Socorro Ramos and her life story but sadly this children's book did not give justice to that, I actually learned more about Ramos' life in GoNegosyo than in this one, The words and the sentence structure found in this book were not kidfriendly some were too technical, The paragraphs were too long unlike normal or usual children's books, Even the sentence structure was not the usual ones seen in children's book, My review at sitelinkGMA News Online
Nanay Coring or Mother Coring is the affectionate nickname of Socorro Ramos, who with her husband, started the National Book Store chain.
National Book Store is like the Barnes amp Noble of the Philippines and was named after the cash register brand they first used.
All the other bookstores in the Philippines seem to follow the same style, It is a mix of books and school and office supplies as well as stationery some of which tend to focus more on the latter inventory rather than the books.
This picture book explained that during WWII books were being destroyed and they could only sell nonbook items to survive,
Most of the books also tend to be shrink wrapped to discourage reading in the store,
Included in the back areof her tips which she has learned and used over the years, Nanay Coring was hardworking and had a good head for business, Despite a few setbacks, she persevered, She also incorporated things she knew people needed and wanted and sold those alongside the books, Her story of entrepreneurship started when she couldn't afford to go to college, This was her way of helping others continue their education,
I also enjoyed the collage illustrations,
Snatched my officemate's copy and read it for a while was planning to steal it but his copy has a dedication from Nanay Coring herself, he got it from the launch of the book when he covered it for a show, not that I'm a criminal, people in the office know that I just love books.
It was a quick read, I actually know what's in it already cos Nanay Coring's story had been everywhere back then, I don't know why.
I love the illustrations and the packaging as well,
I guess, if I'm half my age, a quarter even, I'd really enjoy this, i will learn more on the story Just an okay book for me,
My second time to read an Yvette Fernandez's children's book, I would say that I enjoyed her sitelinkBig John: The Life Story of John Gokongwei Jr, more. As a book intended for children, they are both short, inspiring and with attractive illustrations, However, I think the reason why I liked the one of Gokongwei more was that I had sketchy knowledge of his life prior to reading the book.
Compared to this book about Nanay Coring, I remember watching an interview with her in one of the TV programs several years ago, So, there was no element of mystic anymore,
Nanay Coring is the founder of the biggest bookstore chain here in the Philippines, It is called National Book Store, It has been in existence foryears now, It outlasted all its competitors, I remember that when I was studying in the's and's, there were Alexan and Goodwill, Both of those have either folded up or under new management or company name, Then on the's came the now closest competitor, FullyBooked but National Book Store created NBS Bestseller and Powerbooks to compete with the market niche that FullyBooked is targeting.
I studied in the provinces, I finished my elementary and high school in an island in the Pacific and my mother purchased our school supplies in a neighboring small town that also did not have a National Book Store branch.
I took my college degree in a city atop a mountain and there was no National Book Store there too, So, I did not grow up with National Book Store, I was not a laking National kid,
I am more of a Batang Booksale, When I started working, I was already here in Manila and beside the gym where I had workouts, was a branch of Booksale.
This was in the mid to late's and that bookstore was the one that really made me to who I am now: a certified bookworm.
However, I salute Yvette Fernandez and the people for these inspiring children's books, They are easy reads and full of practical insights on how to overcome challenges and how to be entrepreneurs, Most importantly, part of the proceeds from the sale will go to charitable institutions, For that alone, I promise to buy and read all the other works in this wonderful series,
Mabuhay ka, Yvette Fernandez! Yvette Fernandez is the editor in chief of Town Country magazine, She lived for many years in New York but is happy to be home with her family and her Peter in Manila.
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