The book Exhibitions March in Bahrain began since the mid -seventies of the last century, when the General Library Administration organized on March 27, 1976 the first book exhibition in the country, in the commercial department hall adjacent to the General Library of Manama, under the name “The First Arab Book Fair”, and then limited to limited publishing houses from Egypt, Lebanon and Palestine, and the Palestine Wing had a prominent human presence, where all his books were sold in just three days, and in 1978 the Bahrain Exhibition was held The first international book, and its organization continued every two years, moving between different halls and halls, until he settled at the Bahrain International Exhibition Center in 1992, acquiring its position as a prominent cultural demonstration, and a destination for readers and publishers from Bahrain and abroad.
This ancient history gave Bahrain a firm reputation in the Arab cultural scene, where the exhibition was a fixed date that readers, writers and publishers ahead, because of its platform for interaction and exchange of knowledge, an opportunity to provide libraries with the latest versions, and a public celebration of the book and reading.
But while this cultural heritage was present in the memory of generations, the Arab region is witnessing a wide cultural movement today, through which the countries restore consideration to the book, and the exhibitions turn from mere markets for sale to live platforms for knowledge, the writers and researchers gather and publishing houses, and open spaces for dialogue and discussion, and the readers provide an opportunity to touch the culture in all its dimensions, in these exhibitions the benefit is not limited to the sale Purchase and profitable commercial matters, but they work to extend cognitive bridges between cultures, and enhance Arab presence on the map of global knowledge.
For me, my participation in Arab cultural seasons was an invaluable opportunity; I met in it with readers from different backgrounds, and I exchanged discussions with them about my thoughts and my books, during which I found valuable references and sources in addition to my doctorate research, and made me live an extended cultural and knowledge experience, the book exhibitions are a valuable opportunity to see the latest Arabic publications in various fields of knowledge, as it allows readers to learn about the product of major publishing houses and authors from different countries, and discover new works It may not easily reach local libraries, making it a wide window on the current Arab and international cultural scene.
Since the year 2021, my new book has been postponed, postponing it in the hope that I will celebrate its inauguration on the land of Bahrain, where the meeting with the public has a special impact, and when I was informed that the Bahrain International Book Fair may return this year, it returned to enthusiasm, and I finished what was suspended for years, but this enthusiasm soon dispersed when I got the news of the absence of the exhibition again this year.
That frustration is not an individual feeling; Many Bahraini writers leave their work in the drawers, waiting for a platform the size of the book fair to be the moment of its birth in the hands of the readers, and to feel that their effort did not go in isolation, the absence of the exhibition means losing a national opportunity to celebrate creativity, and the area of the direct meeting between the writer and the reader declined.
The return of the Bahrain International Book Fair is a cultural demand that carries a historical commitment in its essence to our identity, and its revival again brings to Bahrain its place that it deserves, and gives its audiences and writers the space in which their history and creativity befit them, and places the name of Bahrain again on the map of book exhibitions.
