Annual Senayan fair a bookworm's delight

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Sun, 06/03/2007 8:55 AM | Jakarta

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Book lovers will have another opportunity to find their favorite volumes with the Jakarta Book Publishers Association's annual week-long book fair at Senayan Indoor Stadium.

The fair celebrated its opening Saturday and is set to run through Sunday June 10.

Around 75 participants from publishers, bookshops and non-profit organizations have planned to participate in the event which this year is themed ""Discovering the Joy of Reading"".

""We want to encourage people, (regardless of their) age or background, to love books and discover the joy of reading,"" said organizer Kulistyorini Wudianto.

""We want them to understand that reading is not boring -- and that it can be fun.""

Other than offering a discount of up to 70 percent, fair organizers have planned a series of book discussions with favorite writers, including Gola Gong.

Gola is most famous for his novel, Balada si Roy (The Adventure of Roy) and he today manages a creative writing community in his hometown of Serang, Banten.

The fair also has planned a presentation by Ibu Kiswanti, a housewife who promotes the joy of reading to neighbors through her small library in Lebak Wangi village, Parung, Bogor.

Pak Urip, a bookshop owner who has dedicated his life to books, helped open the fair with his special talk show, organizers said.

According to Kulistyarini, both these figures plan to encourage the public to love books with enthusiasm, while they share their own struggles learning to read and enjoy literature.

""Ibu Kiswanti never gives up promoting reading (for life) among her villagers,"" Kulistyarini said.

""Despite resistance from her neighbors when she first opened her library many years ago -- people today support her (venture).

""And they have all enjoyed the benefits of the small library.""

For visitor Suteng and his family from Bekasi, going to the book fair has always been a great recreational activity to enjoy over the long weekend.

His family love books and they make reading a daily habit for sons Farian, who has just graduated his elementary schools and Adi, a second grader.

""My sons enjoy reading and they like browsing the bazaar to find their favorite magazines and picture novels,"" said Suteng at the opening of the fair.

Farian and Adi were each enthusiastically browsing and picking out their favorites books -- but on occasion appeared confused with the incredibly wide selection.

""We allow the boys to choose their favorite books and we never allocate a specific budget,"" Setung said.

Another visitor, Lucia, from Cipinang, East Jakarta, said she always visited the Senayan-based book fair.

""There are sometimes more than three events in a year, but I always come here whenever there is a book fair, because my family loves reading,"" she said.

Lucia, who came with her teenage son and husband, said she usually spent around Rp 300,000 at the bazaar.

""The focus is of course to find books for my son,"" Lucia said.

""He loves comics and popular science magazines.

Sometimes we can't always find many interesting books but it's always fun to check and browse around the stands.""

For more information contact Alamat Sekretariat on tel. 4786 2881.

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