About Natalia's Reading Nooks

I have been fortunate to travel around the world. My happy place is a small island in the Phillipines called Pamalican, which I visit every year. With a hotel and just a few houses, it's one of the 45 islands that make up the Cuyo Archipelago in the Sulu Sea. The majority of staff on Pamalican come from the neighbouring remote island of Manamoc where the people rely on agriculture or fishing to survive.

In December 2019 I set up a charity aimed at encouraging reading for enjoyment amongst the young children of Manamoc Island. I completed two rounds of fundraising so that I could create and build colourful reading nooks in their classrooms. Happily, the project is still going strong today.

I furnished the reading nooks with shelves full of picture books of all kinds, written in both English and their local language, hoping that they'd discover a lifelong passion for books and reading while also making progress in literacy and English fluency.