Dragons may be legendary, but they are not passe for the children and adults who visited Sharjah and its much-loved book fair this year, interacting with and tailing the animal personas through the corridors and halls of Expo Centre Sharjah.
The curtain has fallen on the 42nd edition of the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), held under the theme “We Speak Books”, which attracted to its venue an estimated 1.2 million visitors, from 109 countries. This is no ordinary book fair where only bibliophiles go. It is a 12-day carnival of sorts for residents and international visitors alike – children’s workshops, panel discussions, celebrity visits, food trucks, cookery shows, roaming theatre and its performers, police academy band music, special cultural programmes from the country that is Guest of Honour, and many more. The best part is that every programme on offer is free of cost.
The previous edition in November 2022 had attracted 2.17 million people from 112 countries; over 1.3 million titles and 1500 activities had seen all roads leading to Sharjah chock-a-block with traffic. However, with the Israel-Gaza war casting a pall of gloom in the Arab world, festivities remained muted this year.
Occupying centrestage at the venue was an exquisite collection of books, manuscripts, maps and other sea-faring equipment from Portuguese expedition through Arabia in the 16th and 17th centuries. Organised in conjunction with the University of Coimbra, Portugal, the exhibition retraced the Portuguese presence in the Gulf, and the region’s importance as a trading post and halt en route to India.
If the presence of the reigning don of Indian cinema Shah Rukh Khan had caused a stir and a houseful attendance in 2022, this year it was Bollywood’s Kareena Kapoor, Kajol and Neena Gupta who brought fans, eager to hear their tuppence worth on books and life, in large numbers to the venue.
But it is not the filmstars alone who add value to the cultural extravaganza organised by the Sharjah Book Authority. Literary giants from the international and Arab worlds – the likes of Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, prolific Libyan-born novelist Ibrahim Al-Koni, Swedish behavioural expert Thomas Erikson, Canadian journalist and author Malcolm Gladwell – and renowned astronauts Sunita Williams and Hazza al Mansouri (UAE’s first man in space), and comedian Bassem Youssef headlined SIBF 2023 enriching it with their perspectives and experiences and offering the fascinated audience valuable insights into the future.
A panel discussion in progress at the fair. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The presence of a large expatriate community from the State of Kerala in India has meant book launches, seminars and a near-exclusive hall dedicated for works in their native Malayalam language. According to Sanjay Jesudas, Sales Manager at DC Books Dubai, an Indian publisher and retailer that established its presence in the UAE in 2008 with the Sharjah book fair, the company does roaring business during the annual fair. “We had nine stalls at the book fair, which included exclusive stalls for Indian titles and Malayalam books, apart from international books. We always have good sales at the book fair, including library purchases by schools.” Anbuselvi Manoharan, a sales executive at Jashanmal Books, noted that the book authority’s generous gift of vouchers to school students encouraged many budding readers to stock their personal libraries with the latest releases.
A DC books stall at the fair. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Sharjah, which likes to be known as the cultural capital of the UAE, has carefully cultivated its image though numerous activities promoting arts and culture. Ruled by a man of letters, Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad al Qasimi, the emirate has a prestigious array of museums, universities and libraries that seal its position as a haven of art and culture. The Ruler generously allocates funds to the tune of $1.2 million every year to stock Sharjah libraries with books from leading Arab and international publications. The fair is also the biggest revenue generator in terms of sales for many Arab publishers.
Sharjah’s prowess as a reading emirate and as a champion among book fairs, is evident from its rising credentials – it was the “market focus” at the London Book Fair last year, the Guest of Honour at Seoul this year and the would-be Guest of Honour at the upcoming book fair in Greece next year.
The emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi are not far behind in organising book fairs – since its inception in 2009, the Emirates Literature Festival has seen a starry mix of celebrities and authors who engage, inspire and transport visitors to the world of books, and also convey to the rest of the world that Dubai is more than its skyscrapers and malls. Abu Dhabi has its own exclusive book fairs in the capital and in the cities of Al Ain and Al Dhafra.
Dispelling myths
The book fairs go a long way in dispelling popular myths about Arab nations lagging behind in education and knowledge acquisition. The World Bank and UNESCO have actively supported West Asian governments in devising innovative strategies for tertiary education and knowledge acquisition respectively. The Arab Reading Challenge, launched by UAE Vice President and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, is one such initiative to raise awareness about reading, improve Arabic language skills and promote cultural awareness and Arabism in the pan-Arab universe. The challenge is for students from Years 1-12 to read as many as 50 or even more books in an academic year and summarise them to qualify for the vetting, with the winning student clinching $1,50,000 and the winning school $1 million. Interestingly, participants also hail from India, Pakistan and many European nations.
This is not a one-off phenomenon. Education in the Arab nation has evolved in 50 years to boast a literacy rate of around 95% for both men and women. It attracts a student clientele from other parts of Asia – including India – and Africa. Together with home-grown universities, prestigious Western and Indian universities have established campuses in the country. The capital Abu Dhabi hosts the West Asian campuses of New York University, INSEAD Business School, and Sorbonne University. Indian Institute of Technology’s first overseas campus is commencing classes in Abu Dhabi in the coming academic year. Dubai and Sharjah are home to numerous high-ranking public and private universities such as University of Birmingham Dubai, BITS Pilani Dubai, and American University of Sharjah. Ajman and Ras al Khaimah are not far behind in providing niche courses and institutes. A medium of instruction in English, global faculty, world-class infrastructure and a cosmopolitan living are ample reasons for the well-heeled to choose the UAE for their higher education.
The oil-producing Arab nation has shown that the way forward is not just oil but soft power through education, space and tourism.
