SIBF keeps readers glued to stories and storytelling

Under the vast roof of the Sharjah Expo Centre, where the 44th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) took place, readers from every corner of the world chased stories; some in futuristic digital worlds, others in dusty, sepia-tinted chronicles of the past.

From children clutching gaming guides to adults leafing through tales of faith, real-life rebellion and travel, the 12-day annual event this year has become a microcosm of how the world reads today: curious, eclectic, and endlessly connected. And it has drawn people from all over the world.

Ask fourteen-year-old Dhananjay Iyer, a Grade 9 student isn’t here for fantasy or fiction.

His picks are Minecraft handbooks that, he says, give him more than a “beginner’s coding guide.”

“I’m reading books that help me build things,” he says, flipping through a new Minecraft manual.

“Minecraft teaches you how to build using redstone,” he adds, talking about the powerful circuit-based component used in Minecraft to create complex contraptions, functioning like a real-world electrical system.

“It even teaches some form of coding and so books like these make my games smarter.”

For other teenagers like Asmi Pattnaik, seventeen- year-old, it’s the Japanese children’s fantasy, adventure, graphic novel series Amulet that’s winning her and her friends over at SIBF, with its blend of thrilling adventure, magic, and relatable heroes.

“Every time I open Amulet, it feels like I’m in another world. The adventure is so fun, I don’t want to put it down,” said the eighth grader who bought The Stonekeeper book after hearing about its fast-paced plot and visuals.

“This has now become one of the most talked-about graphic novels among my friends in school,” she added.

There’s plenty for adults too.

But beyond the young, tech-savvy crowd driven by early lessons in faith, SIBF also draws in seasoned readers from across continents from the Gulf to Europe.

Across the hall, Valerie, a 58-year-old visitor who is drawn to the travel and history shelves, is absolutely thrilled at this year’s offering.

“I’ve always been fascinated by history and the stories of great journeys, and I am so happy to have just picked up a book on Ibn Battuta’s travels, and reading it feels like time-travel on paper,” says the doctor from Cannes, who also bought Saladin: The Life, the Legend and the Islamic Empire by John Man besides besides picking up a copy of The Travels of Ibn Battutah by noted British arabist Tim Mackintosh-Smith.

For Anesa, 26, from Sarajevo, reading has always been a way to connect personal experience with the wider sweep of history.

She grew up acutely aware of how history shapes lives in real and lasting ways.

“Stories like these remind me that history isn’t just something in books, it’s alive, it’s personal, and it continues to affect us every day,” she said, glancing through the pages of her newest buy – a paperback copy of A Rebel in Gaza: A Daughter of Rafah Speaks written by Asmaa Alghoul and Sélim Nassib and translated by Mike Mitchell.

Whether it’s a child learning to code through fantasy or an adult tracing the routes of medieval travelers or modern history, SIBF’s readers reveal one thing in common – an appetite for stories that spark imagination and connect lives across borders and generations.

This celebration of books and ideas continues until November 16 at the ongoing 44th SIBF, organised by the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) under the theme “Between You and a Book.”

Earlier, Menassah Distribution presented 850 of the latest titles from Emirati publishers at its pavilion during the 44th Sharjah International Book Fair.

The company connected readers with books and enhance the experience of visitors at what has become one of the world’s largest and most prominent cultural and literary gatherings.