My thoughts on Ekushey Boi Mela
Every year I look forward to the coming of Ekushey Boi Mela, the world’s longest book fair spanning an entire month. This is usually my favourite time of the year when I visit the stalls with friends, buy books and sometimes attend the open-air events hosted by Bangla Academy. The festive air of the fair, with visitors dressed in colourful attires and the sound of music and all kinds of announcements filling the air, is an additional attraction. But what I like most about it is the presence of children, who are drawn by the colourful storybooks put on display in the children’s corner. A photo published in Friday’s Daily Star has thus attracted my attention: it showed a young flower-seller, about ten years old, stopping by a stall decked with beautifully illustrated books.
The image stuck me as a potent symbol of a reader in the making. Despite his visible struggle in life which made him sell flowers for a living at such an early age, this boy seemed immersed in reading, totally unaware of what was going on around. It was a beautiful snapshot of juvenile curiosity. And it made me hopeful. We need more readers like him. We need adults to play a supportive role so that children develop a habit of reading, because a society where children read books—not just those prescribed in classroom—and enlighten themselves as they grow up can never stray off its cherished path.
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