Dubai: I had developed my passion of reading since I was five years old. Fortunately, my school became the stepping stone in transforming me into a voracious reader. Slowly, reading became a part of my life and described my personality. As I grew-up, I noticed that I had a wide range of books, starting from the age of five and all the way till 12. I also realised that there were less ways of enhancing my reading skills in International City, Dubai, where I live.
I gave it a thought, recollected some books and decided to share these among the friends living close by. My objective was also to raise awareness about the power of reading and how it can change one’s life.
In April this year, I opened up a library named “Insprire2Read” for children aged between the ages of six to twelve. I posted information on the building’s notice board and also handed over the brochures to the children playing on the ground floor. I received a positive response from children living in my community and around 10 children registered on the first day itself.
I had numbered my books and sectioned them according to their types. I had also made membership cards and constantly monitored the borrowing and returning of books. Though all are currently manual, soon I will try to manage them using a simple software. This library is fun and a learning experience for both my friends and I.
I am also planning to host activities like read aloud and creative writing in the coming weeks. I visit book fairs and pre-owned book shops to expand my collection of books. Some of the library members also voluntarily donated books and I’m very thankful to them.
I am glad to be a part of the Year of Reading initiative in the UAE and I support this mission with my heart. For those interested in taking books from my collection, visit my website www.inspire2read.com.
Through my library I have realised that, “Everyone’s a reader, some just haven’t found the right book.”
— The reader is a pupil based in Dubai.
