How can we make every day a World Book Day?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/childrens-books-site/2012/jan/30/world-book-day-book-doctor

'Schools need more time for reading aloud, choosing and sharing the pleasure of reading books and not just extracts'

World Book Day always generates huge enthusiasm for reading in my children's school. The children love dressing up as a book character and the £1 voucher means they end up owning a new book and so reading more. All the teachers suddenly seem very excited about reading too. Do you have any suggestions as to how schools can keep that excitement about reading going all through the school year?

Schools need more time for reading aloud, choosing and 

sharing the pleasure of reading books and not just extracts

I quite agree about the stimulation and success of World Book Day, which falls on March 1 this year. Every year it seems to get bigger and better and it means that schools have the chance to concentrate on the pleasure of reading in its widest sense. Knowing different authors, finding out who you like – and who you don't - plays a key role in becoming a confident and enthusiastic reader.

Whether you spend the £1 voucher on a special World Book Day title or on any other book means every child can add a title to their book store. All research shows that owning books plays a key role in encouraging reading and we need to do all we can to make that happen.

But it is not just because children end up owning books that World Book Day inspires. It is also because it concentrates on stories and, as you say with the dressing up, the characters in them. Ensuring children have a whole view of books in terms of the stories and the parts played in them is the surest way to raise enthusiasm for reading.

Schools need more time for reading aloud, book choosing and sharing the pleasure of reading whole books and not just extracts. Just some of those could make reading exciting all through the year.

What are you reading today?

It's an endlessly interesting conversation-starter, and we'd like to record your answers on a Flickr gallery

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2012/jan/27/what-are-you-reading-today

What are you reading? is often the start of a great conversation. We swap book recommendations and write about the books we've just readon the site, but now we'd like to invite you to answer the question in pictures – don't tell us, show us.
To do this we have started a Flickr group called What are you reading today? where we invite you to upload your photos and share with us what you are reading. You can post up to seven photos a week in the group, so if you like, you can share what you are reading every day and use it a bit like a visual book diary. This is an experiment so it's up to you which way it goes and what it turns into, but it might be a great way of getting a moving picture of what books are proving the most popular with readers.

The photo can be a picture of you reading your book or just a snap of the cover. As long as we can see the title, we don't mind. And, as library goers across the UK mark Libraries Day on 4 February, this seems the be the perfect moment to show your support for your library by posting a picture of the book you've just borrowed.

If you have any questions, or any problems uploading your photos to the group, please let me know in the thread below. If you're on Twitter you are also welcome to tweet us your photos @guardianbooks.

Readers on the London tube. Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian 

An Emirati children's book author talks about the importance of supporting literacy

http://www.thenational.ae/arts-culture/books/an-emirati-childrens-book-author-talks-about-the-importance-of-supporting-literacy

Jan 30, 2012 

The Sharjah-born writer Nadia Saleem Al Kalbani had decided from the beginning of her career that her children's book characters would display human emotions. Existing children's books place too much emphasis on "direct advice and educational direction", she said.

"I love honesty in writing and I love humane writing," she said.

Her book A Sweet Word features a young man who expresses his joys and fears by writing them down on small pieces of paper that he hides inside his pocket. According to Al Kalbani, these words become the man's "road map, which leads him to live his life in harmony with his neighbours - the inhabitants of the Earth".

Illustrations in her book are kept very simple for her young readership.

"I wanted to give children something different, something noble but entertaining and effective - and at the same time something that is humane," she said. "My characters are not ideal and they are not angels; they make mistakes and get frustrated at times."

Nadia Saleem Al Kalbani

Al Kalbani was one of two Emirati writers longlisted for the Sheikh Zayed Book Award for children's literature, although she was not on the shortlist when it was announced last week. She said the nomination alone made her feel successful and that she's grateful for the opportunity to showcase her work to a wider audience.

"Writers should not write aiming to win a prize - the prize will come to honour and encourage [writers]. The prize or nomination is a confirmation to tell you, 'Yes, I read your book. Thank you, I enjoyed it'."

Al Kalbani's book - her first - was published in March 2011 and all copies were distributed by hand to young people, at no cost.

"I don't consider writing a job - I don't get paid for my writing and I don't work for anyone," the author said, adding that she draws full-time as well. She also organises workshops related to children's literacy, some of which are supported by government entities.

As a young writer, Al Kalbani used to find inspiration in the phrases others had written on the walls of the old quarters of the UAE. While no one in her family directly encouraged her to write children's stories, her longlisted work was, according to her, "originally presented to the soul of my father and the heart of my mother.

"When I wrote, they stood by me and read my writing and were happy for me. I believe that our journey through life in the company of our families plays a big role in forming the person we turn out to be," she said.

Promoting literacy among children is something she feels passionately about. In her opinion, books are too expensive, so a non-profit company that will print, publish, translate and distribute children's books at nominal prices should be established.

"This company would aim to encourage a love of reading - reading in actual fact is not a luxury, it is a necessity," she said.

"This project is for human development and it needs authors, painters and translators who don't aim to make money from children's books - it's the right of each young and small palm to have a book," she said.

Although A Sweet Word is aimed at readers age 12 and above, the work's strapline is "Thoughts for children … young and old".

The work, Al Kalbani said, is dedicated to "childhood, wherever it is.

"Childhood could be in the heart of an old man, a passing scene in life or a sweet poem. I would like to imagine that my small book might wake up the child in us."

artslife@thenational.ae

My father was a freedom fighter

Recently i read the book, 'My father was a freedom fighter' by Ramzy Baroud. This is the first time that i have read a book on Palestine in English. Its a nice book that gives a nice description of the events in the author's life along with the Palestine history. The book also reflects the sense of humour, the Palestinians possess. The humour in times of danger is something unbelievable. The events from the times of Ramzy's grand father till the death of his father are mentioned in brief. The Suez conflict, Yom Kippur war, Camp David Accord, Oslo accord, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, the victory of Hamas find a mention in this novel. The atrocities of the Israelis and the struggle of the Palestinians are given in a clear manner. Ramzy's grandfather was forced to leave his native, Beit Daras and he felt and hoped that he would return soon to his house. But neither the author's grandfather nor his father were able to return back. The language is bit difficult in some places, but a slow and careful reading can manage this. A nice book for those who to wish to have a picture of Palestine.

Mirror launches year-long reading campaign

The Daily Mirror is to run a We Love Reading campaign, backed by poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, throughout 2012. 

In today's edition (16th January), the newspaper said it aims to "open up the world of possibilities that it [reading] can bring to everyone", and was "particularly committed to helping young people learn to love reading and enjoy its endless benefits." In its leader column, the tabloid urged parents to encourage their children to read. "Let them discover the pleasure of curling up with a good book - or a Kindle!", it said. 

Also in today's paper, Duffy paid tribute to the role of her small local library in Stafford in fostering her reading habit in childhood, as well as supportive parents and an inspirational teacher at secondary school. "Reading meant to me, then as now, liberation, celebration, affirmation," she wrote. "To read is to be entertained, challenged, reminded, enthralled or changed. It requires the mind and the imagination to engage actively with the page and so it makes the thinking part of ourselves fitter."

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/mirror-launches-year-long-reading-campaign.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Emirati women create orphanage for unwanted books

http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/emirati-women-create-orphanage-for-unwanted-books

Amna Al Haddad

Dec 31, 2011 

DUBAI // Two Emirati women have created a virtual orphanage for unwanted books, with the hopes of finding them new homes and encouraging a culture of reading.

Mariam Al Khayat and Shaikha Al Shamsi, both 28, started The Book Shelter initiative last month. Anyone in the UAE can either donate books or log on to their website and browse titles they would like to adopt, free of charge. The shelter will even handle the delivery.

"I think people see reading as a chore," Ms Al Khayat said. "Everything is fast-paced now and when you read, you need to sit quietly. Maybe that's why they don't read as much."

Only 50 per cent of Emiratis own more than 50 books, according to research being carried out by the Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research in Ras Al Khaimah.

Fatma Al Bannai, the founder of a writing group,
has already donated four books to The Book Shelter.

Samar Farah, co-author of the study, which is to be published early next year, said: "Literacy rates are really high among Emiratis, but literacy is not the actual problem - it's the lack of a reading culture that is more problematic."

According to a Unesco study conducted between 2000 and 2008, 90 per cent of Emiratis over the age of 15 can read.

"We were shocked to learn that so many people don't like to read, and we want to make it easier for people to pick a book," said Ms Al Shamsi. "We think reading is very important. Personally, we are hard-core bookworms."

The women currently have 100 books on their website, but they will be adding another 150 in the coming weeks. Their collection includes children's literature, fiction and non-fiction in Arabic, English and French.

Ms Al Shamsi said they plan to set up a permanent collection point in each emirate as the project grows. First, though, they will set up in Maraya Art Centre in Al Qasba, Sharjah.

"In the long term, we want it to be sustained by the community itself," said Ms Al Shamsi. "We want to see people doing it on their own: recycling, donating, and adopting books, which in turn will promote a reading culture."

Sakina Eb Iha, a 19-year-old student from India, has donated two books and adopted three from The Book Shelter. "I really like sending books to people and spreading the love for reading," she said.

Fatma Al Bannai, the 23-year-old founder of an Emirati women's writing group, has already donated four books to The Book Shelter.

"I had these books for a while and they were just collecting dust on my bookshelf," she said. "When I heard about this initiative I was glad to donate them so that other people can enjoy these books as well."

aalhaddad@thenational.ae

Visit blog.thebookshelter.ae to donate or adopt books