Festive mood, huge sale at book fair

Hundreds of people of all ages gathered at the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela on Bangla Academy premises in a festive mood yesterday, as it was Pahela Falgun, the first day of spring.
Scores of book lovers in colourful traditional clothes thronged the bookstalls while many were seen waiting in long queues for hours to enter the fair venue.
The Bangla Academy premises and adjoining roads became overcrowded in the evening prompting the law enforcers to open extra gates at the fair venue to handle the huge crowd.
Despite the rush, the book lovers, mostly young, waited in queues with their friends and family members with great enthusiasm.
Security measures were strengthened at the fair venue to avert any untoward incident.
A good number of writers visited the fair and participated in book launching programmes. A total of 19 new books were unveiled at the fair yesterday.
Booksellers of various publishing houses said they made the highest sale of books yesterday at the fair since it began on February 1.
A huge number of book lovers thronged the bookstalls of the publishing houses that brought out new books of popular writers.
A total of 159 new books arrived at the fair yesterday which include 'Bonkusumpur Rahasya' by Ali Imam, 'Sheikh Mujib Bangladesher Arek Nam' by Dr Atiur Rahman, 'Koyekjon ET', by Dhrubo Esh, 'Kar Jokes', by Ahsan Habib, 'Jahurar Bari' and 'Desh-Bidesh' by Rahat Khan, 'Nattokalar Bhumika' by Golam Sarwar, 'Apni Ki Janten' by Utpal Shuvro, 'Londoner Ticket' by Mostafa Mamun, 'Antu and Aquarium' by Faridur Reza Sagar and 'Last War on the Mars' by Shafiq Safi.
The gates at the fair venue were opened at 11:00am, four hours earlier than usual, for weekly holiday yesterday. The gates will be opened at the same time today.