The annual book fair in Madurai this year has seen a lot of demand for Tamil classics and epics from people of all ages, so much so that many publishers have come out with new editions and appealing reprints of the same.
Representatives of Sixth Sense publications have stocked up on copies of ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ which has been reprinted by a sister concern of theirs, Vaanavil publications.
“The new edition has all five parts of the epic tale and has been bound together in a special way so that the pages from the thick book do not come apart. We have kept in mind that it is an extremely long book and designed the pages with an appropriate font size and spacing,” explained R. Murugan, sales manager at the stall.
He said that they had decided to stock and sell copies of such old classics and epics as there had been a great demand for them among youngsters as well as avid readers who wanted to get new copies.
Echoing his views, S. Subramanian, executive committee member of Book Sellers and Publishers Association of South India (BAPASI), said that there had been a revival of sorts for classics such as these.
“We’ve observed this year that while the demand for English novels might have been affected due to online sales, readers who seek good Tamil non-fiction and fiction titles, want to buy them here,” he said.
Copies of books such as ‘Agam Puram Andhapuram’ and ‘Indhiya Therdhal Varalaaru’, which trace the history of the country’s governance, administration and politics and biographies of Hitler, Julius Caesar, Napolean Bonaparte and other historical figures in Tamil, have been in a lot of demand among students of history as well as school and college libraries, which are sourcing multiple copies.
K. Pravitha, a student of Tamil who had come to visit the fair, said that the Tamil literature section was extensive and interesting.
“While people say that not many youngsters are reading, there are some modern anthologies and writing rooted in the present culture which many publications promote. Students can be encouraged to read these books to develop a reading habit,” she said.
Many of the salespersons as well as the organisers acknowledged the fact that books on the late President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was the most in demand at the fair this year.
“The demand for his autobiography ‘Wings of Fire’ as well as other books about him has been such that it has reached the sale level of Thirukkural books or Bharathiyar’s poems,” a salesperson said.
Mr. Subramanian, one of the fair organisers, said that this trend had been seen from the last book fair held in Erode as well.
“Parents want their children to read and know about him and are buying books about Mr. Kalam,” he said.
