The collection of children’s books at Amar Ekushey Boi Mela 2016 has failed to impress parents, writers and literature experts due to its lack of variety and quality.
The stalls carrying children’s books are flooded with ghost and horror stories, children’s comics and cartoon stories, complained several parents who brought children to the fair.
Eminent author Syed Manzoorul Islam said he was horrified by the amount of mistakes in children’s books at the fair this year.
“These books are full of wrong spellings and incorrect sentences. Most books are either ghost stories or on cartoon characters,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
Bangla Academy should form a panel to ensure that the quality of children’s books is maintained, he added.
There are 58 book stalls located on the Suhrawardy Udyan side of the fair, dedicated to children’s literature.
Most of these stalls are flooded with titles such as “Motu-Patlu,” “Chhotoder Shera Bhoyonkor Bhuter Golpo,” “Vir the Great,” “Shiva the Great,” “Bhuturey Barir Bhut Konya,” “Magic Tricks,” “Bhoyonkor Bhuter Golpo,” etc.
“It is difficult to find a book here that is appropriate for my children,” said Moudud Islam, one of the distressed parents. “I can’t find a book that does not contain any violence or horror tales. The number of good-quality children’s books seem to be very few.”
But the ghost stories and cartoon characters seem to be very popular among children, according to the book sellers.
Mamunul Azim, an attendant at Shishughor Prakashani, said “Motu-Patlu” and “Bhoyonkor Bhuter Golpo” are the bestsellers in their stall; several other stall attendants said the same.
“These days, most writers and publishers seem to be more concerned about putting a book out, rather than ensuring that the product is up to the standard,” said Selina Hossain, chairperson of Bangladesh Shishu Academy.
“Writers should be especially careful when writing for children. If they cannot ensure the quality, they should not proceed further and should practice more,” she told the Dhaka Tribune.
Juvenile littérateur Lutfar Rahman Riton said the number of good writers have grown smaller. “There are many rhythm writers, but we see fewer talented writers, especially prose writers, nowadays.” He hoped that young writers would take up the mantle of children’s literature and help it develop in a proper way.
Number of visitors growing steadily
As the 11th day of the book fair closed yesterday, stall attendants reported an increasing number of visitors as well as good book sales.
The fair saw 131 books published yesterday, putting the number of new arrivals at 1,113.
Today the fair will open at 11am for the Children’s Hour, which will last until 1pm. Publishers are hoping for better sales this weekend than last weekend’s Children Hour sales.
