Adopt a book now

Dubai Two Emirati women have set out on a twin mission to revive the habit of reading through ‘book adoption’ and to bring back the age-old tradition of story-telling.

Shaika Al Shamsi, Business Counsellor with Khalifa Fund, and her partner entrepreneur Mariam Al Khayat, both 29, have already established three libraries in three locations – the Maraya Art Centre in Al Qasba, Sharjah; the Thalassemia Centre in Latifa Hospital, Dubai; and the third at Bastakia.

Their main objective is to make books accessible to the public free of cost. The libraries, also referred to as book shelters, house books donated by community members.

“The concept of this initiative is simple: we accept book donations and find them new loving homes through various projects,” said Shaika, adding they call the process ‘book adoption’.

“By outsourcing their books we create a sustainable project that recycles, promotes reading and strengthens the reading culture in the UAE,” she said.

The design of the shelter at Bastakia has been inspired by the book The Secret Garden, said Shaika. “We wanted our visitors to feel like they’re stepping into their own private space where they can pick up any book at random and just read.”

The ladies are also keen to revive hakawati – the ancient Arab art of storytelling, and the Bastakia shelter provides the perfect setting. Typically a story-telling session involves a volunteer, dressed in exotic outfits, walking around the area with a book and picking a crowd, no matter how small, to read to.

XPRESS was invited to one such session recently where volunteers took turns at story-telling.

Crystal Van Lloy, an actress and volunteer with the shelter, read The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl. “I heard about the initiative on Facebook and I thought it was a wonderful way to engage with children. I remember how I used to ask my mum to read this story to me over and over again,” said Crystal. She also read The Princess And the Frog.

Alexandra Gabriele, a Colombian dentist, and mother of four-year-old Charlotte Matthew, thought her child was privileged to have been told a story in such an old-fashioned manner.

“It’s magical. My daughter is lucky to have witnessed something so surreal, when do you see a woman in a skirt walk up to and propose to tell a story?” said the doctor.