Big Bad Wolf: The world's biggest book sale is returning to Dubai

The Big Bad Wolf sale will be in Dubai Studio City, and will be open 24 hours a day

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres, All photos by Reem Mohammed/The National

Andrew Yap, the managing director of Big Bad Wolf, looks at some of the tock.

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

The Big Bad Wolf Sale Dubai has more than three million new English and Arabic books across all genres,

It was incredibly popular last year, and the world's biggest book sale is returning to Dubai next month: the Big Bad Wolf Books sale will run from Thursday, October 10 to Sunday, October 20.

The event promises discounts ranging from 50 per cent to 80 per cent on literature, children's books, cook books, self-help and business books, crime novels and more.

Incredibly, the sale will run 24 hours a day, so you can bag a bargain at 4am should you so desire. The event will be held at the Sound Stage Venue, and admission is free.

This year, organisers are offering a VIP pass, which will give you access on the VIP day (Wednesday, October 9) from 9am to 11pm, so that you can see the books before the crowds descend over the first weekend. Visit the sale's social media on Instagram and Facebook to see how to access the VIP pass.

Last year was the first time the sale had ever been held in the Middle East, and this April the event was held in Pakistan for the first time . Big Bad Wolf Books was founded in 2009 by married couple and business partners Andrew Yap and Jacqueline Ng. Concerned by the low rate of literacy in Malaysia, the pair opened a book store in 2006 in Kuala Lumpur to try and encourage more people to start reading. They soon realised, however, that in order to make a real difference, they would need, in Yap's words, "to cast a bigger net".

It was too expensive to open further book stores, though, particularly at a time when the publishing industry was experiencing a slump. So Yap and Ng launched Big Bad Wolf Books as a way of trying to rebrand the book-selling market. They have since held sales in Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Manila, Cebu, Colombo, Bangkok and Taipei.

"We wanted to make book selling exciting again because the industry has not been very healthy recently," Yap told The National. "Children are reading less and less but Big Bad Wolf Books sales offer more than just books. We have food stalls, a playground and events such as colouring competitions."

How do they keep the prices so low?

The books come from what Yap calls the “remainder market”, which consists of books that have been overprinted and unsold by publishers. Recently, though, publishers have also been selling directly to Big Bad Wolf Books. “They see us a way of reigniting the reading culture,” says Yap.

Al Aidaroos goes one step further and describes the Big Bad Wolf Books sales as “a paradigm shift” for book sellers. “We are the Uber of the book industry," he says.

The Big Bad Wolf Books Sale is at Dubai Studio City (Sound Stages 2 and 3) from October 10-20. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/bbwbooksuae