(L-R): SM Cares Assistant Vice President Richard A. Caluyo, SM Book Nook Reading Festival co-organizer and BookShelfPH co-founder Monette Quiogue, and SM Aura Regional Operations Head Stephanie Co

 

The SM Book Nook Reading Festival, held on January 31, 2025, at the Book Nook in SM Aura, drew 500 book lovers of all ages for a dynamic celebration of Filipino literature and creativity. From engaging author meet-and-greets to lively performances and informative workshops, the festival offered a rich array of literary experiences.


Interactive storytelling and inspiration

One of the festival's highlights was the launch of SM Book Nook's innovative "Pass the Plot" board. This interactive activity encouraged participants to co-create a story, sentence by sentence, showcasing their collective creativity. 

The "Pass the Plot" board at the SM Book Nook Reading Festival ignites collaborative storytelling, inviting participants to build a narrative sentence by sentence.

A major highlight of the event was the presence of renowned literary personalities such as National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario (Rio Alma), Dean Tony Laviña, Hans Pieter Arao, and Jayson Fajardo. Attendees had the unique opportunity to connect with these esteemed authors, get their books signed, and engage in insightful conversations. The festival also showcased emerging talent, with popular independent authors like Therese Villarante-Langit connecting with readers and sharing their work. 

National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario (Rio Alma) inspires readers and shares his literary journey at the SM Book Nook Reading Festival at SM Aura.

A celebration of community and shared passion

A heartwarming moment unfolded when publishers and authors united for a meaningful cause—donating books to the SM Book Nook. This symbolic gesture underscored the collective mission of promoting a culture of reading and knowledge-sharing. 

Authors and publishers, with SM Book Nook pioneer Shereen Sy (8th from right), unite to donate books at the SM Book Nook Reading Festival, promoting a love of reading.

Engaging activities for all ages

The festival buzzed with activity throughout the day. Attendees participated in fun quiz games, delved into historical fiction readings, and engaged in thought-provoking book club discussions. Spoken word poetry performances by teens and young adults added a contemporary flair, while a session on zines with BBZ offered a glimpse into the world of independent publishing. Publishers like Bookshelf PH, Grana Books, and Aklat Alamid showcased their latest titles, and a special session on copyright law provided valuable information for aspiring authors. 

The audience is enthralled as author Bambi Rodriguez reads from her latest work.

The SM Book Nook Reading Festival proved to be more than just a book event. It was a lively community gathering, a celebration of Filipino storytelling, and a source of inspiration for both established and aspiring writers.

For more information about SM's community programs and how you can get involved, visit: https://www.smsupermalls.com/smcares/.

Do you want your wedding on December? Our wedding was also on December, it was a memorable happy moment and we're super busy that time, but still it's a precious part of our life. Spending our wedding day with our friends and relatives. Preparing things for the wedding is very tiring, good thing now that there are event planners that can help you prepare for that big day, with that, SM Aura is hosting the Bridal Luxe event which started yesterday Sept 7 and it's up to Sept 9. A weekend of wedding planning event! 

Rita Neri Event Planners (RNEP) is proud to celebrate 25 years in business as a Pillar in the international events management industry in 2018.


What started out in the 90s as a small enterprise by a woman, Rita Neri (RN), pursuing her passion for excellence, has been transformed into one of the icons and staunchest supporters of the events management industry in the Philippines. From a small shop in Glorietta, RN and RNEP has gone on to pioneer various endeavors such as holding professional wedding coordination seminars, coming out with two best-selling wedding planning books, collaborating with global brands such as Preston Bailer, Grace Ormonde,working with international properties, and supporting the Philippines' Department of Tourism in promoting the country and its talents on an international scale.
It has also seen Ms. Neri and her RNEP teama become resource speaakers for universities and corporations, become a contributing writer to wedding publications, work with variousTV networks and media platforms as an industry expert, and branch out into marketing and business development consultancy. For these efforts, RNEP was given the Agora Awards in 2013.
From an enterprise of one, RNEP now keeps a stable of full-time staff and coordinators of around 17, some of whom has been with the company since the beginning.Today, it also has offices in the Philippines and California, and services clients from 4 continents.
Through it all, RNEP has seen the richness of various weddings: from local celebrity weddings like that of Vic Sotto and Pauleen Luna, Ryan Agoncillo and Judy Ann Santos, Paul Soriano and Toni Gonzaga, Aga Muhlach and Charlene Gonzales, Bong Revilla and Lani Mercado, to that of Chinese superstars Dicky Cheung and Jess Zhng, ndNicolas Tse and Cecilla Tsung. It has also done weddings of all sorts and for different cultural backgrounds: from Chinese, to Indian, Christian, Muslim, same gender, military wedding, from vineyards in Napa, to mountains, hills, beaches, valleys, in various cities in Philippines, throughout Asia, and in the United States.
Truly, RNEP is thankful for its exciting 25 years. Along with its loyal clients, RNEP would like to thank its dedicated team members and friends in the industry for their support. To mark this milestone, RNEP has planned a number of activities for the entire 2018, including The Bridal Luxe Fair with the SM group in SM Aura in happening on September 7-9, 2018, at the Grand Atrium of SM Aura in BGC. This exciting and elegant Bridal Fair aims to showcase a good mix of established and up-and-coming event industry suppliers to give clients variety and inspiring insights. The event has also has various activities from performances by the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra and Uno Ritmo, to talks on various wedding topics by leading event suppliers like designers Frankie De Leon and Catherine Cavilte, internationally muti-awarded lensman Lito Sy, AUdrey Tanco Uy of Top Caterer Bizu, celebrity make up artist Junie Cera of The Bloc, and international event planner Ms. Rita Neri.

The event is open to the public and free of charge and promises to give attendees a weekend of all things weddings to look forward to.

Country's one and only Pop-Rock Princess Yeng Constantino has been cutting the mustard this year and continuously creating buzz with abundant and successful firsts on music and new achievements locally and internationally. Aside from rejoicing on adding one to her age, Yeng is counting all her blessings and currently cooking up for something to thank her supporters.



As the only one sitted on the Pop-Rock princess throne, Yeng never fails to exude new dimensions oh her music. Originals are usually branded as risky ones especially now that revivals continue to conquer the music scene. Proud and brave, Yeng was never afraid of testing waters. Metamorphosis, her fifth studio album was Yeng's dream project. Reuniting with one of her favorite musicians Raymund Marasigan, together they created another brand new sound without completely shying away from the OPM vibe. Yeng is really proud of the album because she was able to mesh her secular and non-secular sides as a musician and still bring out the magic in it. Metamorphosis (which bagged 2013 Star Awards for Music's Rock Album of the Year award), features hits such as "B.A.B.A. Y", "Josephine", "Sandata" and the biggest chart-topper of the year "Chinito" which also won as Star Awards music video of the year. Yeng also grabbed the following nominations in the forthcoming ASAP Pop Viewers Choice Awards - Pop Female Artist, Pop Song, Pop Music Video and Pop Album all for the song "Chinito".




BY Request was one of this year's highlights that Yeng is grateful for. It was Yeng's dream concert. Hitting two birds with one stone, BY Request was staged at the Big Dome and most especially shared the moment with OPM rock icon Bamboo. Yeng and Bamboo performed not just their hit songs but mostly songs requested by fans even the ones way out of their elements. BY Request was a sold-out success and will be followed by provincial and international repeats early next year.




Being hailed as the one and only Filipino ambassadress of Academy Of Rock was one of the humongous achievements Yeng has under her belt. Yeng did not just prove that she could make a mark in the

Asian music scene but also raised the bar of OPM and made it noticeable worldwide. As an ambassadress, Yeng has been gracing several Asian music festivals and events. Last October 12, she performed in one of the biggest music festivals in Hong Kong called "Silvermine Bay Music Festival" held at Lantau Island. Yeng nt up the festival with two inspiring medleys from the Beatles and Eraserheads. Ended her set with her original song "Salamat" which the 30,000 crowd was singing along to even the non-Filipin0s.

The same song is already a part of School Of Rock's student syllabus. The festival could not have been a better stage for the red-haired one to showcase her vocal prowess. She was the only Filipino performer in the said gathering, joined by HK's top artists - Ever, Chochukmo, Shotgun Politics, Killersoap, Tonick, Matchbox, Dovey and co-ambassadors Supper Moment and Joey Tang. Yeng will be flying to Taiwan on November 11 for a grand press conference organized by the Rock School together with the rest of the other ambassadors. Couple of invitations from other Asian countries are still lined up for Yeng in 2014.


Another dream was fulfilled for Yeng as Academy Of Rock Singapore handed over her own guitar line -the "Yeng Guitar Series" which was launched in Singapore last September 29 at Harry's Bar Esplanade. Yeng was so surprised and overwhelmed to see members of "Yengsters" Singapore chapter who joined her during the meet and greet. A culminating show entitled "That Thing You Do featuring Yeng Constantino" was staged at The Esplanade Outdoor Theater. The AOR ambassadress shared the stage with two exploding sets of popular rock and pop numbers. Yeng Guitar Series became available here in the country (Academy Of Rock The Fort Taguig) last October 7.

September 30, day after the guitar launch, Yeng was privileged to record an original song in Singapore School Of Music Recording Studio for Academy Of Rock CD compilation entitled "Better Than Yesterday", featuring Singapore's hip-hop / rap act Sheikh Haikal. The single will also be released and heard in Manila airwaves very soon. After the November 11 press conference in Taiwan, Yeng will immediately head straight to Singapore from November 14 to 16 for a series of promotional radio tours for "Better Than Yesterday".