2018
Grand Prize
Becky Bravo for “May Alaga Akong Bakulaw”
Honorable Mention
Raymond Falgui for “The War Between Fireflies and Christmas Lights”
Genaro Gojo Cruz for “May Mahaba Kaming Listahan sa Tindahan”
Danie Rose Sedilla-Cruz for “Si Lola-Nanay at Si Dandandandan”
“At ano naman ang hitsura ng alaga mong bakulaw?”
Kinagat ni Lilit ang isa niyang daliri at nag-isip. “Aaa…mahaba po at makapal ang buhok na tumutubo sa ulo niya’t mukha. Ang balat niya ay kulay abo, dilaw ang kanyang ngipin, at maiitim ang ilalim ng mata. Malalim po ang boses niya at mabagal siyang magsalita.” Dito ay napangiwi siya at ibinulong, “Mabait naman siya, pero mabaho ang hininga.”
- May Alaga Akong Bakulaw -
Lilit has many friends in her backyard—a fairy, a pink bunny, and a flying horse. Her newest friend is a sad bakulaw (a big hairy monster) named Robert. And Lilit is on a mission to nurse him back to happiness. Becky Bravo’s 2018 Salanga prize-winning story is about sadness but it is as comforting as a hug. May Alaga akong Bakulaw was published by Adarna House in 2019.
Ms. Bravo has won the National Book Award, the National Children’s Book Award, and the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Award for Literature. This is her first Salanga prize.
Honorable Mention was given to “The War Between Fireflies and Christmas Lights” by Raymond Falgui; “May Mahaba Kaming Listahan sa Tindahan” by Genaro Gojo Cruz; and “Si Lola-Nanay at Si Dandandandan” by Danie Rose Sedilla-Cruz.
Awarded during the National Children’s Book Day celebration on July 17, 2018 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.
