SHARJAH // A campaign to get books into village homes picked up pace last month when Knowledge Without Borders (KWB) distributed "libraries" of 50 Arabic books to families in Wadi al Helo on the outskirts of Sharjah. The third community to benefit from the Sharjah Government initiative since its launch last November during the emirate's World Book Fair, Wadi al Helo is also the biggest so far, with 106 families receiving the gifts in the presence of Sheikh Abdullah bin Salim, the Deputy Ruler.
Marwan al Sarkal, the deputy head of KWB's organising committee, said: "Thus far we have distributed libraries to 27 families in Nahwa village and to eight families in the Shees village. "We are very pleased to be distributing libraries to an additional 106 families in Wadi al Helo." The books, which include novels and children's books as well as reference works and volumes on topics ranging from religion and science to health and cooking, are presented in custom-built coffee tables that also act as bookcases.
The organisers hope to have reached up to 24,000 Emirati families by early next year. "We want to have a library in every Emirati house in Sharjah," said Mr al Sarkal. "This project will ensure that children and their families will have books they can enjoy." He added that by providing somewhere to keep them "so they aren't put aside in the corner of the house but rather right there close to the family, you instil a loyalty to the book that will soon translate into a culture of loving the book".
The KWB initiative represents an attempt to encourage Emirati families to read more in Arabic to preserve both the national heritage and the use the language. For this reason, Mr al Sarkal said, the books distributed under the scheme concentrated on UAE culture and Arabic and Islamic principles. These books had been very well received by the families reached so far. Coupled with the book distribution, KWB is also preparing activities that encourage reading.
Organisers are planning an in-school programme that will reward children who read a set number of texts within a certain time frame. KWB is also drawing children in by holding storytelling events, puppet shows, traditional dance performances, drawing workshops, competitions, and a variety of other activities. hkhalaf@thenational.ae
