I heart books

It took a book about two kids looking for clues all over the world to get my son to finish reading one. We had spent the beginning of his summer vacation negotiating his household chores and how many books he should read in exchange for my not nagging him about the time he spent playing computer games.

Entitled “The Maze of Bones,” the book is the first in a series called “The 39 Clues” written by Rick Riordan. The book comes with collectible cards and an online game. Curious about why my son finished reading this book and not the others I tried to get him to read, I decided to read it myself.

“The Maze of Bones” is fast-paced, thrilling and filled with contemporary references. The protagonists’ au pair listens to an Ipod and everyone seems to be carrying a backpack. I realized just how boring my husband’s old “Hardy Boys” mysteries were in comparison to it. My son actually requested that we buy the second book in the “The 39 Clues” series after finishing the first one.

How ironic then that just when we finally succeeded in getting him interested in reading, imported books will now become more expensive or difficult to get. That is, if the buzz in the blogosphere is true. I’ve read several accounts, all of them referencing Timothy McSweeney (http://www.mcsweeneys.net/links/manila/1dispatch6.html) on how the Bureau of Customs has re-interpreted the Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials, otherwise known as the Florence Treaty of 1950. Under this treaty, contracting states agreed not to impose customs duties on books. Customs officials have allegedly declared that only books about book publishing and educational books are exempt from customs duties.

An Internet search led me to a position paper of the Book Development Association of the Philippines on Department of Finance Order No. 17-09 dated March 24, 2009 imposing duties on imported books. I still have not found a copy of the order though.

In the 1980s, it was difficult to find imported books in Cebu. I got by borrowing “Nancy Drew” mysteries and “Sweet Dreams” romances from my cousins and neighbors. There was a stall inside a department store in Colon Street that lent books for fee. I think some books could be kept for a week and newer titles had to be returned in three days. I also bought second-hand books in Music House but even that seemed expensive then.

When I moved to UP Cebu for high school, I must have borrowed all the fiction that was available in the library. I ended up reading a lot of books by Thomas Hardy because there wasn’t much else to read. Finding all the fiction at the Main Library in UP Diliman, most of which I could borrow for two weeks, made me feel like one of the finders of a Golden Ticket granted entrance to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.

Being able to buy any book I want is my idea of having enough money. Thankfully, I’m not a collector of rare books and I find joy just scouring bargain bins, book fairs and second-hand bookstores. Once in a while, I buy newly released books that I want to read right away. If the Bureau of Customs continues to impose duties on imported books, I might have to go back to just borrowing books from the library. Maybe I can convince my son to read “Hardy Boys” mysteries again.

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