This year’s ‘Al Ain Reads’ book show – the fifth in the annual series organised by the National Library of Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), will open at Al Ain Convention Centre on 29th September and run until 5th October with a line-up of noted Emirati authors, writers and exhibitors.
The show aims to promote reading and build direct relationships between readers and authors through a series of cultural visitor programmes that include lectures and cultural events.
The cultural programmes will focus mainly on local culture with UAE-based writers and authors speaking with school students, national universities and local media outlets. The show also supports the local publishing industry by highlighting their publications.
Al Ain Reads director HE Jumaa Abdullah Al Qubaisi said: “In the last five years this show has attracted local publishers to Al Ain, a city witnessing qualitative development in the interest shown in culture and the book industry, which underlines Al Ain’s positioning as a university city.”
The visitor-friendly show programme includes heritage games and the telling of local fairy tales; lectures on UAE culture and literature, performances by Emirati pianists as they create stories for their music, as well as traditional knitting demonstrations.
Young readers have a programme all of their own with workshops on how to design book covers and book storage boxes, the art of storytelling to develop youngsters’ listening and questioning with competitions offering books as prizes. Children’s reading games are also being organised in collaboration with female students of the United Arab Emirates University.
New this year for the younger children will be the much loved Sesame Street characters Elmo, Cookie Monster, Grover, Ernie and Bert and possibly even Big Bird.
People with special needs are also being catered to with dedicated art and craft workshops under the supervision of trained specialists and with a sign language interpreter provided by the Zayed Higher Organisation for Humanitarian Care and Special Needs.
Show highlights will be the popular ‘book exchange’ where visitors can replace their old books with new ones, and a traffic awareness programme with a variety of contests run in co-operation with Al Ain Traffic Police. Education and family counselling will also be offered in a dedicated corner.
