Pakistan’s first online library!

Originally published in Unique Pakistan

Very rarely would you hear of libraries being opened up in our country. However, a lack of public reading spaces doesn’t necessarily signify a lack of reading culture. This can be proved by the success of an innovative business venture called The Readers Club, launched in 2009 by the enterprising duo- Usman Siddiqui and Jawad Yousuf. The Readers Club is a vast online library consisting of thousands of books that can be borrowed once you subscribe to the website. It is Pakistan’s first book rental service.   

 I stumbled upon their website two years ago. Excited by the vast variety of books available for a small monthly membership fee; I instantly became a member and filled up my bucket list. I had the books delivered to my house the very next day. With excellent customer service, efficient delivery and good quality books, I was won over. A year later The reader’s club sister website Kitabain.com (Kitabain is urdu for books) was launched. This is a platform where you can buy and sell books online. Perfect for those looking for books at a lower price delivered to their house and those wanting to get rid of stacks of books consuming space in the house. Kitabain.com also received the Service Innovation award at the P@SHA awards, Lahore in October, 2010.

An effort such as this one must be applauded as it not only promotes reading but makes books much more accessible and affordable for a majority of people. Last year in December, at the annual Karachi international book fair at Expo Centre I was delighted to find a stall by The Reader’s Club offering numerous books at quarter the original prices. It was probably one of the best stalls at the fair, offering the most affordable books.

Their next project includes digitizing Urdu books into an audio format. In our country where the older generation shake their heads in disapproval of the young and their supposedly non-existent reading habit; an online library is a sign that there are still ambitious people who cater to readers in Pakistan and a significant number of people who consume such services.

 Here is a video about them!

Happy reading!

Stunning Book Art!

It kills me to see books and papers turned and twisted mecilessly but I find a bit of consolation in the fact that these are old newspapers and books turned into wonderful pieces of art. Just goes to show the uselfullness of book!

                                                             A tower of books 

                The Argentinian artist Marta Minujin has built a tower of 30,000 books.

    

 The tower was built to celebrate Buenos Aires' nomination for World Book Capital 2011.

 

 "Paper Elegies"

 Nick Georgiou uses old books to make these colorful artworks

                                                    

                                           

                                                        Carved book landscapes

Artist Guy Laramee says about his work: So I carve landscapes out of books and I paint Romantic landscapes. Mountains of disused knowledge return to what they really are: mountains. They erode a bit more and they become hills. Then they flatten and become fields where apparently nothing is happening. Piles of obsolete encyclopedias return to that which does not need to say anything, that which simply IS. Fogs and clouds erase everything we know, everything we think we are.

Cascades of books

  Artist Alicia martin transformed thousands of unused books into columns that pour out of windows of historical buildings in Madrid into the streets.

 

                                       These over sized sculptures are definitely one of a kind.

 

Sources: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2OceD5/:pZK9eOfY:Tj2GO3yC/www.thisiscolossal.com/2011/12/carved-book-landscapes-by-guy-laramee/
http://www.walltowatch.com/view/2000

Of books and Pakistan

First published in Unique Pakistan

A few years ago, Pakistani writers were globally unheard of. Fast forward to today and you’ll see Pakistan’s literary landscape flourishing. With international awards and widespread acclaim to their merit, Pakistani authors are making waves in the literary circles and casting their magic. Pakistani novelist writing in English are now being hailed as the new generation of intellectuals propelling the country’s almost non-existent reading culture forward and garnering attention for the country due to their immense talent.

The likes of these young guns include Daniyal Mueenuddin, Kamila Shamsie, Mohsin Hamid, Mohammed Hanif, Bina Shah, Bilal Tanveer, Ali Sethi, Nadeem Aslam amongst many more. Dealing with themes of religious extremism, racism, politics, class division, war and love, these novelists are weaving complex and epic tales with their distinguished style. Their popularity can be measured by the crowd that turns up in droves to attend their sessions in literature festivals in Pakistan and India as well as the prestigious awards they have been nominated for and won.

For the last three years, Karachi Literature Festival has been accelerating the process of the resurgence of writing in Pakistan. Every year it’s becoming bigger and better, bringing together the biggest names in literati from various countries. This year the festival showcased brilliant talent to the literary starved audience of Karachi by presenting an astounding number of 150 authors, poets, journalists, publishers, etc.

According to Kamila Shamsie: ”Pakistani writing is in it’s infancy”. While that may be true, Pakistani writers are surely taking the publishing world by storm.

Literary crushes!

I have plenty of free time on my hands these days and it seems all I do the entire day is read. Thank God for the makeshift library I set up a few months back; plenty of unread books grace my shelves so I'm set for a few more weeks. Yesterday I finished reading Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier and found myself utterly captivated by it's dead protagonist- Rebecca. This made me ponder back to the numerous literary crushes I've developed over the years. Here are some them: 

  

 Mr. Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Johnny Depp plays Willy Wonka, 2005

Every fat kid with an irrevocable love for chocolate adored this eccentric character created by Roald Dahl in Charlie and the chocolate factory. Not only is Mr. Willy Wonka the best chocolatier in the world, he also owns a chocolate factory where everything is made entirely out of chocolate! Apart from a fabulous dressing style complete with a sleek bob, a tall hat and a perfectly tailored maroon coat, I love him for his quirkiness, his unconventional attitude and his disgust for almost everything that isn't made up of chocolate. Watching Johnny Depp play Willy Wonka in Tim Burton's film adaption only cemented his position as one of my favorite literary crushes. 

Best dialogue: “"Everything in this room is eatable. In fact even I am eatable, but that is called cannibalism my dear children and is frowned upon in most civilizations.”

 Vampire Lestat in Vampire Chronicles

Stuart Townsend plays Lestat, 2002

 This enigmatic monster gripped my attention in Interview with the vampire by Anne Rice- A story about blood sucking, bad ass vampires! (Take that Meyers). Despite the story being about Louis and his transformation from a human to a vampire and his subsequent adventurous life, it was Vampire Lestat who made a lasting impression on me. He prompted me to read the entire Vampire Chronicle series, including Vampire Lestat and The queen of the damned.
This 200 year old vampire is a vanity-struck sexy rockstar, a rebel, a miser, and ultimately a redemption seeker. He is more like one of my bi-polar friends...yes Molls I'm referring to you. He's crazy when life's good and deeply morose when things go bad. Unbelievably powerful and  unapologetically fatal; Vampire Lestat is irresistible!

 Best dialogue: ''Evil is a point of view. God kills indiscriminately and so shall we. For no creatures under God are as we are, none so like him as ourselves.''

Lord Henry in The picture of Dorian Gray

Collin Firth plays Lord Henry, 2009

 Could there be a character more witty, opinionated and intriguing than Lord Henry? The answer is no! He plays the devil's advocate, misleading the naive Dorian Gray with his demonic views of the world. Lord Henry is a clever man who doesn't practice what he preaches, instead he influences others with his immoral and unconventional philosophies. He may not be the desirable hero of this novel; he is sexist, offensive and attention seeking but Lord Henry is also undeniably fascinating and an exquisitely eloquent character who says things that most of us only wish we had the courage to speak.

Best dialogues: "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.''

"The people who love only once in their lives are really the shallow people. What they call their loyalty, and their fidelity, I call either the lethargy of custom or their lack of imagination. Faithfulness is to the emotional life what consistency is to the life of the intellect - simply a confession of failure."

Florentino Ariza in Love in the time of Cholera

Javier Bardem plays Ariza, 2007

Florentino Ariza is observant without being detached, tragic without being hopeless and stubborn without being impatient. Our passionate hero waits fifty-one years, nine months, and four days to reach his lover, Fermina Daza. During his wait he turns into a sex addict, becomes an obsessive stalker and lives and breathes poetry.

This is not to say that I find the above mentioned traits attractive but despite his flaws Florentino Ariza is a die-hard romantic who reaffirmed my belief in true love that transcends time. Written in Marquez's masterful prose, Florentino Ariza is unforgettable.
 

 Best Dialogue: “The only regret I will have in dying is if it is not for love.”

 Rebecca in Rebecca

Author: Daphne Du Maurier

Rebbecca, the antagonist of the book with the same title is headstrong, accomplished and beautiful. Although she is dead, she is still indestructible. I am completely smitten by her character because of the different sides of her personality that were revealed to me as the book progressed. In the beginning the narrator of the book pieces together an image of Rebecca that portrays her as the perfect hostess of the grand Manderley and the much loved wife who dies tragically at sea but a few chapters into the book and the real Rebecca begins to emerge; one who is rebellious, flirtatious and an evil woman who commits unspeakable acts under the masquerade of beauty and grace.

The oppressive presence of Rebecca throughout the novel captured my imagination and made her one of the most memorable characters I've come across. Her 'last joke' in the book is the perfect example of Rebecca's wicked nature. Not so much of a crush than a fascination, the ghost of Rebecca haunted me long after I finished the novel.

These were mine. Who are your literary crushes? Any character who has captured your mind and enthralled you with their charisma?

Dead man walking - Mark Twain filmed by Thomas Edison

Mark Twain is arguably one of the best writers of all time. Unlike so many other authors of yesteryear  whose pictures we have seen in paintings and photographs only, here we have a footage of Twain captured on film by none other than Thomas Edison in 1909. The eerie video shows Twain in his estate in Stormfield with his daughters Jean and Clara. Here's a rare glimpse of the man who has inspired and entertained a generation of readers beyond measure.

It is sad to think about how his daughter Jean, featured in the video died in December of the same year, while Twain himself passed away the following spring in 1910.