How the Sharjah Book Fair could change your life

Shelves at the Frankfurt book fair in Germany. The fair ran from October 19 to 24. AFP

A reader, wearing a face mask amid the ongoing pandemic, on a bench at a park in Moscow on October 18. AFP

Saudi visitors read books displayed on shelves during the Riyadh International Book Fair in Riyadh on October 2. Reuters

The head librarian at the Norwegian Nobel Institute, Bjoern Vangen, stands behind a display of books about and by 1971 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Willy Brandt, in the reading room of the Norwegian Nobel Institute in central Oslo, Norway, September 14. Reuters

A young girl reads Matilda by Roald Dahl on the lawns of the Hay Festival – 2016 marked the centenary of the author and his books remain as popular as ever. Alamy

A reader at last months' La Paz's International Book Fair in Bolivia, 18 September. EPA

Margaret Seaman from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk reads her story in One Hundred Reasons to Hope, a children's illustrated non-fiction book which celebrates the stories of triumph, perseverance and positivity from the past year, at the former home of Captain Sir Tom Moore in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire. Picture date: Thursday September 16, 2021.

A young man reads a book during his mandatory wait period, after being vaccinated, to check for immediate side effects, on September 15, in Ibiza, Spain. Getty

Aiya Talal AlShwiek a business student from Ajman University in the library at the Fujairah culture, youth and community development centre in Fujairah, UAE. Satish Kumar / The National

A young patient, Ghadeer Mohammed Owda reads a story book with ProVita Medical Center CEO Michael Davis at their facility in Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi. Antonie Robertson / The National

The Kindle 2 electronic reader is shown at an Amazon.com news conference in New York. A reader argues that while paper books are nostalgic, e-readers make for a better reading experience.

The actor, Henry Winkler, who played the Fonz on the show 'Happy Days', is dyslexic and only first read a novel in his 30s, but now sells millions of his own, written for children.

Emirati women (from left) Fatma Ibrahim, Hamda Al Bastaki and Fatema Al Kamali display their new children's books as part of the fifth Emirates Airline Festival of Literature in Dubai. Visitors to the festival said there were not enough children's books in Arabic to inspire youngsters to love reading. Sarah Dea / The National

Aida Kassissieh reads children’s stories in Arabic to her grandchildren, from left, Edward, 2, Sienna, 6, and George, 2. She has also launched a YouTube channel for children. Pawan Singh / The National

Michelle Deegan, librarian at Latifa School for Girls, says her job is to help children deal with information. Reem Mohammed / The National

Sharjah takes the lead in a broad drive to foster a culture of reading in the UAE . Pawan Singh / The National

Faisal Mohammed has started two book swap boxes on the Ras Al Khaimah Corniche to encourage greater reading. Sarah Dea / The National

Mossab Abo Toha, collects english books for his library and bookshop for the Gaza project. Seen here reading English books to children in the garden at his family home in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, February 20, 2017. AFP

A familiar scene at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature in Dubai. Satish Kumar / The National

A student of grade 6 engrossed in a book, at Zakher Private School British Division in Al Ain, UAE, on March 3, 2016. Pawan Singh / The National

Grade 2 students take part in the World Book Day Celebrations at Zakher Private School British Division in Al Ain, UAE, on March 3, 2016. Pawan Singh / The National

Picture this: you’re perched on the end of a bed, a small child eagerly hanging on your words as you read out loud from a gripping storybook. Now you’re on a beach, the waves lapping at your toes, losing yourself in the latest holiday blockbuster book. You’re lying down, under the weather with a cold, and you’re resting by escaping into the unknown world of a detective novel or historical fiction.

For many of us, our most emotional memorable moments are often wrapped around a book. They evoke a feeling, establish memories and transport us to different world. But they are more than that. There are few things about which we say “it changed my life”, but a book can certainly be one of them. And then we most likely go on to praise the book. "You should read it. It will change your life".

Books matter. Stories matter. We don’t respond to numbers, data or imperatives. It is stories that change the world and who we are.

Next week, Sharjah International Book Fair kicks off with the theme “there’s always a right book”. And a book fair is of course the perfect place to find one. But sometimes that book is in your head, or that of someone you know.

I’m someone who accidentally became an author. I was distraught at how there weren’t any books telling stories about Muslim women like me, humorous, human, flawed, but just as deserving to have a story told about themselves as anyone else. I decided to do it myself. I am now more than a decade into being a writer and five books on. My first book Love in a Headscarf brought me to the fair in Sharjah in 2010, where I saw firsthand the power of telling a good story, and how stories transcend cultures, change attitudes and bring people together. I learnt that if you have a story that should be told, you should find a way to tell it. Be courageous. Stop talking about it and start writing it. How else will a book happen?

Yet so many people tell me that they have an idea for a book. What are you waiting for, I ask. Write, write, and write. The most important thing is to find your voice. Who are you as a writer and what do you want to say? Like any craft, writing comes with practice. But to get to a book you also need to spot which story needs to be told and make a commercial case to a publisher to tell it.

If we’re joining this journey as adults, I say that it is never too late. But where we have the chance, we need to plant the seeds for reading in children. Because children who read become more literate adults and can have better chances of becoming writers. And those writers go on to to tell stories and create books that nourish us.

Amy McCoy reads a book to preschoolers as they finish their lunch at her Forever Young Daycare facility, on October 25, in Washington, US. AP

I remember hiding in my room as a child, devouring books. It is a microcosm into which you can escape as a child, when you’re not old enough to go out on your own. Instead you go in. Your imagination has to work hard to build new worlds but the rewards are manifold. Watching TV and movies is fun, but can be passive and lazy work for the imagination, in comparison.

So many people tell me that they have an idea for a book. What are you waiting for, I ask. Write, write, and write

Reading must be a daily habit. And that is particularly true for children. Studies show they should be aiming for 20-30 minutes every day. And if you’re not persuaded by the fact that reading a book is just great down time from the stresses of school and modern life, then here’s the hard sell. A 2018 study published by the Australian National University looked at data from 160,000 adults from 31 countries. It concluded that a sizeable home library gives teen school-leavers skills that are equivalent to university graduates who didn’t read.

And if you’re wondering how many books you need to build that sizeable library at home, the answer is, it depends what reading level you’re hoping kids will reach. So 80 books in adolescent home libraries raised reading levels to the average, and as the number of books increased so did the reading level, maxing out at 350 books.

Here’s another reason to get into children’s books: they are so well put together – sharp, insightful and well presented. They take complex ideas and explain them in simple clear meaningful ways. Between you and me, I’ve started reading a lot of middle grade non-fiction: brilliant exposition with none of the waffle of adult books.

There is nothing that quite matches the feeling of holding a book and lusciously turning the pages one by one. One of the most exciting and paradoxical feelings is wanting a book to end but also never end, so you can live in its world forever. Read one, write one, share one. You choose. Me? I’m doing all three. You can too.