Philippine Children's and YA Books that Could Have Great Sequels
Because I've been busy finishing the sequel to my book, in between dealing with family epidemics, I didn't get to post much in my social media about children's books in July, National Children's Book Month. Anyway, in my country this is National Language Month (Buwan ng Wika) so I think it's still appropriate to be writing about children's books, which after all are important in promoting language and culture.
Shelving some of my kids' books, I got to thinking about sequels. Series books are extremely helpful in developing the reading habit in children. I've seen this in my own kids and others. Children especially get obsessed with particular characters they can relate with. Luckily, this trend is increasing in the Philippines. Adarna, my publisher, published several companion books last year, including a prequel to Supremo, a sequel to Si Janus Sílang at ang Tiyanak ng Tábon (a planned series), a companion book toRobert Magnuson's Mr. Beetle's Many Rooms, and a new installment of Pilandok.
Quick definitions: A sequel is a book that continues or tells what happens after a story, a prequel what happens before, a companion book uses the same characters or setting (such as a fantasy world created for the story) but is completely separate from the earlier installment. But putting two or more books related in any of these ways already constitutes a series, though the term is normally used when there are more than two books. The Narnia series contains a combination of these. It actually started with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Some of the books added later were sequels using the same children as characters (Prince Caspian, the Dawn Treader), there's also a prequel and several companion books that use the setting but don't have the kids or Aslan in them (The Horse and His Boy, for example).
Anyway, once a child likes a particular character or story, he/she will tend to seek out similar ones. So do grown-ups, but it's in children that this tendency is especially valuable since their reading capabilities and habits are still being formed.
Here's a list of my suggestions for books that a series can be built on.
1. 'Eto na Si Kulasa! (Here Comes Kulasa!) by Becky Bravo.
The first book I picked up which I wished had a sequel. Kulasa is something like a Filipino Ramona Quimby, getting into all sorts of scrapes, which is probably why after rereading her Ramona and Junie B. books my daughter sought it out for a reread. She's an obvious character for a series. The title even sounds like it's introducing a series (with companions like Nandiyan na Si Kulasa [Kulasa is There Now] and Nasaan na si Kulasa? [Where is Kulasa?]) .
2. The Great Duck and Crocodile Race by Robert Magnuson.
Duck and Crocodile are so much like Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie. But the things they do are even more over the top. I'd love to see them in something to do with water--they're swimming creatures, after all! How about Duck and Crocodile Make a Splash--because those two sure do!
3. Supremo by Xi Zuq. While I liked its prequel Pangkat Papaya, I still wanted to know what happened in the play mentioned at the end of Supremo. Two books aren't quite considered a series. Besides, these books would make a great contribution, being targeted to middle-schoolers and particularly boys, who tend to lose interest in reading at that age.
4. Two Friends, One World. There's a lot more that can be done with these two friend, one who is blind and one who is not. It would be interesting to see them in other settings, doing things like going to school or watching a movie together.
5. Una and Miguel by Lilldeshan Bose.
The strength of this brief teen romance is its characters. The unconventional Una is especially charming and sympathetic. It would be nice to see how their relationship grow and to see how they deal with other problems such as Una's cold parents.
Because most Filipino authors focus on developing story, not characters, it's not so easy to think of books that can take off into series. But I do hope more Filipino authors ride on the trend. Coming up with a series not only helps to sell books, it helps to sell reading.
Shelving some of my kids' books, I got to thinking about sequels. Series books are extremely helpful in developing the reading habit in children. I've seen this in my own kids and others. Children especially get obsessed with particular characters they can relate with. Luckily, this trend is increasing in the Philippines. Adarna, my publisher, published several companion books last year, including a prequel to Supremo, a sequel to Si Janus Sílang at ang Tiyanak ng Tábon (a planned series), a companion book toRobert Magnuson's Mr. Beetle's Many Rooms, and a new installment of Pilandok.
Quick definitions: A sequel is a book that continues or tells what happens after a story, a prequel what happens before, a companion book uses the same characters or setting (such as a fantasy world created for the story) but is completely separate from the earlier installment. But putting two or more books related in any of these ways already constitutes a series, though the term is normally used when there are more than two books. The Narnia series contains a combination of these. It actually started with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Some of the books added later were sequels using the same children as characters (Prince Caspian, the Dawn Treader), there's also a prequel and several companion books that use the setting but don't have the kids or Aslan in them (The Horse and His Boy, for example).
Anyway, once a child likes a particular character or story, he/she will tend to seek out similar ones. So do grown-ups, but it's in children that this tendency is especially valuable since their reading capabilities and habits are still being formed.
Here's a list of my suggestions for books that a series can be built on.
1. 'Eto na Si Kulasa! (Here Comes Kulasa!) by Becky Bravo.
The first book I picked up which I wished had a sequel. Kulasa is something like a Filipino Ramona Quimby, getting into all sorts of scrapes, which is probably why after rereading her Ramona and Junie B. books my daughter sought it out for a reread. She's an obvious character for a series. The title even sounds like it's introducing a series (with companions like Nandiyan na Si Kulasa [Kulasa is There Now] and Nasaan na si Kulasa? [Where is Kulasa?]) .
2. The Great Duck and Crocodile Race by Robert Magnuson.
Duck and Crocodile are so much like Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie. But the things they do are even more over the top. I'd love to see them in something to do with water--they're swimming creatures, after all! How about Duck and Crocodile Make a Splash--because those two sure do!
3. Supremo by Xi Zuq. While I liked its prequel Pangkat Papaya, I still wanted to know what happened in the play mentioned at the end of Supremo. Two books aren't quite considered a series. Besides, these books would make a great contribution, being targeted to middle-schoolers and particularly boys, who tend to lose interest in reading at that age.
4. Two Friends, One World. There's a lot more that can be done with these two friend, one who is blind and one who is not. It would be interesting to see them in other settings, doing things like going to school or watching a movie together.
5. Una and Miguel by Lilldeshan Bose.
The strength of this brief teen romance is its characters. The unconventional Una is especially charming and sympathetic. It would be nice to see how their relationship grow and to see how they deal with other problems such as Una's cold parents.
Because most Filipino authors focus on developing story, not characters, it's not so easy to think of books that can take off into series. But I do hope more Filipino authors ride on the trend. Coming up with a series not only helps to sell books, it helps to sell reading.
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