Holiday for kids at Boi Mela; sales surge

A childrens book stall at the Ekushey Boi Mela.

Dhaka, Feb 10: Friday being a holiday, the entire fair was very lively marked by an increased presence of children crowding the Children's Corner from the morning. In fact the fairgrounds were crowded with children and young people the whole day clearly with more than just books in their minds.

The Children's Corner, adjacent to the temple gate of Suhrawardy Udyan, remained overcrowded, with children and teenagers browsing the stalls and flipping through the pages of books looking for their favorite titles.

Sisimpur, an educational TV series specially designed for kids, is a regular attraction at each year's Boi Mela, especially on the weekends.  

Meanwhile, as the arrival of visitors increased on the day publishers, vendors at pavilions and stalls said book sales increased hour by hour.

Like last year, little Mahatab came to the fair with his mother to buy books.  His mother, Tahnuma Haque, bought him two science books and one story book.

She said that she brought her son to the book fair mainly to create an interest in him to read books.  Coming here, her son is very happy to see Sisimpur.

Five-year-old child Tausif Arian says he likes watching cartoons.  So he bought some cartoon books and enjoyed seeing Sisimpur in the morning. 

Meanwhile, visiting the bookstores of Children's Corner, we learned that book sales had increased due to the increase in 'footfall' thanks to the holiday, compared to the rest of the week.

Khandkar Sayem, the salesman of Doito Prakash stall, located in the Children's Corner, said that on Friday the sales were 'quite good'. 

Parents who bring their children obviously must buy them books. They are mainly attracted to cartoons and comic books. 

Teenagers, are more interested in juvenile novels and thrillers. - UNB