UAE | Heritage and Culture
Book fair's 17th edition draws big crowds
Visitors are pouring in to the 17th Annual Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The fun-for-all family exhibition is attracting people of all ages and nationalities.
- By Mohammad Shamseddine Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:00 April 6, 2007
- Image Credit: Ravindranath/Gulf News
- Schoolchildren at one of the stalls at Abu Dhabi International Book Fair.
Abu Dhabi: Visitors are pouring in to the 17th Annual Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The fun-for-all family exhibition is attracting people of all ages and nationalities.
Visitors told Gulf News they were happy with the size of the exhibition and the range of books it brought together.
Some said the place was a bit far to reach, especially for students. Others found the prices on the higher side.
Hatem Tatanaki, 15, from Libya, said he found everything he needed at the exhibition.
"The thing that impressed me the most was finding the same book in English and Arabic. I think it's a great idea that will encourage people to read the same book in more than one language," he said.
"The only bad thing is that the exhibition is too far from the city, and if I found a taxi from my house to the exhibition it would be almost impossible to find a taxi back. I wish they had public transport," he added.
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Damyanti Bhatia, an exhibitor from India, said she was happy with the number of visitors. "A lot of people are coming especially school children and I think everyone is satisfied with the prices knowing that a lot of stands are giving good discounts on books," she said.
Russell Harless, an English language teacher from the United States, said he had hoped there would be more English books. "I understand why there aren't a lot of English books because this is an Arabic country, but at the same time, I think everyone in the UAE speaks English," he said.
Aline Sultan, from Lebanon, said she found the exhibition "very interesting". "This is my first time here and I think it's really interesting. The prices are a bit high but then you find everyone is giving great discounts. I still didn't find the art teaching books for the primary section I'm looking for, but hopefully I will find them," she said.
More for young readers
Carmen Eminger, 37, from Canada, came to the exhibition with her two sons. "I was looking for more English and French books for children but didn't find a lot," she said. "I am impressed by the books for adults, I found a lot of books in English and Arabic, but I think they need to include more books directed at children," she added.
Mohammad Nader, 36, a fitness instructor at a school in Abu Dhabi, came with his students. "The exhibition is excellent; it has a variety books that go along with different ages. As for children, we found a great deal of books for children," he said.
Nader said he came to all the previous book exhibitions that took place at the cultural foundation.
"I like it more here because the place is huge and you can take your time searching for the book you want without being bothered by the crowd around you," he added.
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