A space for new and seasoned readers to discover Ateneo Press books.
What is the Ateneo de Manila University Press? It’s one of the leading local publishing houses in the country, having received the National Book Award for Publisher of the Year for eight consecutive years and maintaining a catalog of award-winning titles ranging from literary to scholarly. The books themselves cover a wide range of topics and issues that are relevant and urgent, and, more often than not, heartrending for Filipinos.
In an effort to further immerse itself in the community, the press has decided to establish its own book club to introduce bookworms from all over the world and from all walks of life to thought-provoking reads that spark stimulating monthly discussions. The book club will be moderated by a member of the Ateneo Press marketing team, with a co-host from the Filipino book community for guided and enriching conversations. Readers will also have the opportunity to ask questions to the author during the latter half of the discussion.
For its first-ever book of the month discussion, this June 2026, it will be Isabela by Kaisa Aquino. Spanning three decades of Philippine history, this rich and sensuous saga is a refuge for the voices of women during revolutionary struggle. Through Aquino’s immersive and visceral writing, the reader becomes a close confidant to these characters, seeing through their eyes, feeling the depth of their wounds, and witnessing the complexity of their humanity. Haunting and heartbreaking in its depictions of simple joys and harsh realities, Isabela spends every word and every page illustrating a vast yet intimate landscape of a place, time, and woman.
You can grab your copy of the book through these links:
Lazada: go.ateneo.net/isabelaLAZ
Shopee: go.ateneo.net/isabelaSHOP
Readers can also purchase their digital copies on Kindle and other major e-book platforms.
Here’s how to join the book club:
Download the Fable app (available on iOS and Android) on your phone and set up an account.
Search for the “Ateneo Press Book Club” in the Clubs section.
Every month, we will pick a book from the Ateneo Press catalog to read together. Announcements will be posted on Fable, Instagram, and Facebook.
Read at your own pace, and share your thoughts and feelings in the chapter threads.
Join the online book club meeting to talk about the book (details will be shared in the Lobby chat room every month).
With the rise of artificial intelligence, the literacy crisis, and the education crisis, it becomes all the more important to foster a thirst for knowledge and a love for reading. It sharpens the mind to think critically and softens the heart to feel things deeply for ourselves and others. Reading doesn’t have to be a solitary activity; in fact, it has the power to bring us closer together as a society.
