Tagalog Bestsellers of the Twentieth Century : A History of the Book in the Philippines

by Jurilla, Patricia May B.

• ISBN13: 9789715505635
• ISBN10: 9715505635
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-07-31
• Publisher: Univ of Hawaii Pr

Summary

This pioneering work is a study on the history of the book in the Philippines, with a focus on literary publishing and Tagalog literary bestsellers of the twentieth century. It spans more than four centuries of publishing, from 1593 when the first book was printed in the country to 2003 when the first nationwide survey on reading attitudes and preferences was conducted. Through its case studies of twentieth-century Philippine literary forms and texts that may be referred to as the bestselling books in their time, the work both highlights and puts in wider context the publishing, manufacturing, distribution, reception, and survival of these bestsellers, and their impact on and relation to the conditions and circumstances in the culture, society, politics, and economics of the time.

Author Biography

Patricia May B. Jurilla teaches with the Department of English and Comparative Literature of the University of the Philippines in Diliman. She earned her PhD on Philippine book history from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Table of Contents

Illustrations and tables	p. viii
Acknowledgments	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
A survey of Philippine book history (1593-2003)	p. 17
In search of bestsellers Twentieth-century literary publishing in the Philippines	p. 57
A new demand for old texts Philippine metrical romances in the early twentieth century	p. 81
Entertainment after the war Aliwan (1945-1947) and the Tagalog novel	p. 105
A serious business Philippine comic book publishing from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s	p. 128
Love in the time of turmoil Filipino romance novels of the late twentieth century	p. 160
Conclusion	p. 186
Notes	p. 191
Bibliography	p. 232
Index	p. 255
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