Karachi International Book Fair opens its doors

Five-day event features books at 330 stalls

KARACHI: If you are a book lover, then make your way to the Karachi International Book Fair 2017 at the Expo Centre where 330 book stalls have been set up to cater to your every literary taste.

Residents of Karachi have already started thronging the Expo Centre where the event was inaugurated on Thursday by Information Minister Nasir Hussain Shah. The five-day book fair is being held in the city for the 13^th time and has been organised by Pakistan Publisher and Booksellers Association.

"The purpose of visiting the book fair is to enhance the knowledge of my children as well as my own knowledge as books are the best sources of knowledge," said Dr Mustejab, who was visiting the fair with his daughter. Holding six plastic bags full of books, he added that they had mainly purchased Urdu books in order to familiarise his children with the language. He said he felt that a majority of the younger generation had lost interest in reading Urdu literature, so he wanted to impress upon his children the importance of reading books.

According to Dr Mustejab, it is shocking to see the number of people who had flocked to the event, showing that people’s interest in reading books has not died out.

The book fair had 330 book stalls selling a variety of books. Publishers from Iran, India, Turkey, Singapore, the UK and others participated in the event, which was attended by writers, poets, students and professionals.



Hosting the book fair is a good initiative since all genres of books are available under one roof, said a principal of a private school. She added that activities like book fairs are a great initiative. The habit of reading helps in educating the people in real terms besides formal education, she said.

Hamza Haider, a student of political science at Karachi University, was browsing through the stalls at the expo. According to him, the fair is a platform that allows people access to thousands of books at a time.

Haider said he was looking for a good book on world history or political science.



Another young doctor, Dr Uzair Mushahid, who had come to attend the fair in Karachi from Islamabad, said he was not particular about the genre he read. His aim was to purchase rare books.

"I have managed to buy books on Urdu folk and classic literature at decent prices," he told The Express Tribune. He also said that the trend of reading books has not ended among the youth, despite what people may believe. It is quite alive and well but the way of reading has shifted from books to online, he said.