IN OBSERVANCE of Guyana’s 44th Republic Anniversary, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, in collaboration with the University of Guyana (UG) Library, the National Library, the Book Foundation, Bookland, the National Archives, and the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD), hosted on Friday a literary fair under the theme “Reconnecting People to Books”.

Held on the Main Street Avenue, the event saw a large turnout, as persons browsed through books on various topics and enjoyed the story-telling and readings on Guyana’s history.

This event provided a pathway for readers, and revitalised the love for reading, especially among young people. The fair had been on pause for two years, and it is hoped that the current fair would have bridged the two-year gap.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony, expressed satisfaction with the huge turnout, noting that the fair should be promoted and made a feature of the annual Mashramani celebrations, as the ministry strives to keep the reading tradition alive, especially amongst young people.

Minister Anthony highlighted that many persons are not aware of the country’s books, and the fair provided them opportunity to be so aware. “It’s not only about reading… I’m not quite sure how many people in Guyana are aware that we have a great publishing tradition, and a lot of people feel that not a lot has been done on publishing in Guyana; but when you walk through the booths, you get a fair sense of what is happening,” Minister Anthony said.

He noted that the UG Library also has a good collection of books that are not fully utilised, and he said that bringing out part of the collection to a mass audience makes people more aware of what is available, and where the books can be accessed.

Dr Anthony also took opportunity to highlight the achievements of the Caribbean Press, which has a collection of books highlighting elements of Guyana’s history. He urged the gathering to pay attention to the books containing presidential speeches by past presidents. Those volumes, he said, give a good sense of what was happening in Guyana during those periods.

Already completed are speeches of the late President Dr. Cheddi Jagan, while work has commenced on the speeches delivered by the late Presidents L.F.S. Burnham and Janet Jagan. (GINA)