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| Photo from National Bookstore Facebook Page |
Just a few months after the Big Bad Wolf Book Fair came to the Queen City of the South, National Book Store launched its Book Binge Bazaar (BBB), making book lovers swoon all over again. The bazaar features low-priced books as well as school supplies. It runs from November 21 to 25, at the Cebu Trade Hall at the third level of SM City Cebu. It’s open from 10AM to 9PM (on Nov. 21, 22, and 25) and up to 10PM on Nov. 23 and 24. Posters and pictures of the event went viral on social media especially since it promised books for as low as Php75. If you’re planning to go, here are some things you should expect.
There aren’t as many books
After being at the Big Bad Wolf Book Fair, I expected the same craziness—long lines, people clamoring for the last copy, and a people having a hard time deciding because of the variety of titles. However, the BBB occupied a much smaller floor area, and a lot of the books displayed were the same. I expected more titles, but the ones there were pretty good for me since I wasn’t looking for anything in particular.
Don’t expect the books to be Php75 unless you’re buying a children’s book
I set my budget at Php750, expecting to get ten books from that since the posters advertised 75-peso books. Of course I expected that there would be books priced higher than that, but what I didn’t expect was that almost all the books priced at Php75 were children’s books. Like the ones you gift a woman with a toddler. Most of the coveted YA novels and self-help books are priced at Php125, Php175, and Php275. So if you’ve already budgeted based on the 75 pesos each book as advertised, you might wanna change it up a bit. However, a lot of the titles are really good, and you could snag hardcovers for as low as Php125.
No long lines
As I mentioned before, the craziness of the BBW Book Fair was absent from BBB. But I did go there just a few minutes after the event opened, so there weren’t that many people yet. There were no lines at the cashier, and I didn’t have to wrestle my way into the piles.
They honor your Laking National Card
If you have a Laking National Card, you should bring it because they still add the points from your purchase even if the book prices are slashed.
There’s a place to sit
Good news to all those who are going to the bazaar to accompany a friend, significant other, or a family member but are not book lovers themselves! There is a designated area for you to sit while you wait (for hours). You don’t have to worry about getting grumpy as much.
There’s a place to sort out your books
Every bookworm does this. (Except when you’re super rich and don’t care about how much you spend.) We put books in our basket, but in the end, we have to make tough choices because we’re sticking to a budget. BBB makes that process easier by putting out tables where buyers can look at their books once again and decide which goes home with them and which didn’t make the cut.
What I Got
To give you an idea of the prices and titles, here are the books I bought from the bazaar. I chose them because they were highly recommended by Booktubers, and they’re very light reads.
Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab (Hardcover) – Php175
This Darkness Mine by Mindy McGinnis (Hardcover) – Php175
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (Softbound) – Php175
The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead (Hardcover) – Php175
Curiosity House: The Screaming Statue by Lauren Oliver and H.C. Chester (Softbound) – Php125
I got five books for Php825, which isn’t bad considering most of them are hardcover, and they are really good titles.
If you’re a book lover who wants to save up on his next purchase, you should definitely check out the Book Binge Bazaar. You’re sure to find great titles for less than half their retail prices. This event could also be your excuse for spending so much on books and another chance to make a promise that this will be the last book purchase for a while. (But we know you’re gonna break that.)
Happy browsing, fellas!
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