Ateneo University Press named Publisher of the Year at the 41st National Book Awards

The Ateneo de Manila University Press is once again awarded Publisher of the Year for the 6th consecutive year.

The Ateneo de Manila University Press was deemed Publisher of the Year at the 41st National Book Awards, which occurred on 24 February, 2024 Hyundai Hall, Arete Ateneo. This is the 6th year in a row that the Ateneo Press has been bestowed this award, bringing its tally up to 7 total Publisher of the Year wins.

The National Book Awards, managed by the National Book Development Board and the Manila Critics’ Circle, is an annual prize that recognizes “the most prestigious book titles written, designed, and published in the Philippines.” 

"Not only has this press garnered 19 titles as finalists in this cycle of awards, it is also worth mentioning that these titles span a range of diverse subject matter, from a novel that looks back on our history and probes the violence of those dark times, to a fabulist fantasy that showcases and celebrates the mythical realm of our culture, and to a vast anthology of Mindanaoan stories and storytellers spanning 1890 to 1990. The seven National Book Awards that the Ateneo de Manila University Press has received at the 41st NBA are proof of its unwavering commitment to literary excellence. We applaud the Ateneo de Manila University Press, the Publisher of the Year, for receiving this distinction for the sixth consecutive year in a row."

Of the 19 Ateneo Press finalists, 6 emerged as winners.

Best Novel in English Yñiga by Glenn Diaz

National Artist Cirilo F Bautista Prize for Best Book of Short Fiction in English Song of the Mango and Other New Myths by Vida Cruz-Borja

Best Anthology in English Kalandrakas Part 1, 1890-1945: Stories and Storytellers of/on Regions in Mindanao, 1890-1990 and Kalandrakas Part 2, 1946-1990: Stories and Storytellers of/on Regions in Mindanao, 1890-1990, edited by Ricardo M De Ungria 

Best Anthology in Filipino Plus/+ at Iba Plus, Maramihan: New Philippine Nonfiction on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identities, edited by Rolando B. Tolentino and Chuckberry J. Pascual 

Best Book of Literary Criticism/Cultural Studies  Isang Dalumat ng Panahon ni Christian Jil R. Benitez

Elfren S. Cruz Prize For Best Book in the Social Sciences and Best Book Design Transfiguring Mindanao: A Mindanao Reader, edited by Jose Jowel Canuday and Joselito Sescon; book design by Karl Castro

Our utmost gratitude goes to the National Book Development Board and the Manila Critics’ Circle for recognizing our dedication to publishing books that center on Filipino narratives within and beyond the country. In her acceptance speech on behalf of the Ateneo University Press, director Rica Bolipata-Santos stated: "We forge on and commit to the vision and mission of the Press, to produce knowledge to build a better nation. If anything, the Press, together with its brave authors, remains oriented toward the future, determined to publish critical and creative material that helps us remember the past, keeping faith to what Rizal said in the Noli, that 'not all slept in the night of our ancestors.'"                                                                                                                                                                           

These titles and more are available here:

• Website: unipress.ateneo.edu
• Shopee: go.ateneo.net/Shopee
• Lazada: go.ateneo.net/Lazada