JEDDAH — An international book fair will be launched in Jeddah on Dec. 12 and will continue for 10 days under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture and Information, Prince Mishal Bin Majed, the city's governor, announced. It has been more than 25 years since the book fair was last held in Jeddah. Prince Mishal said Makkah Emir Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has approved the fair on the same dates in the next five years. Prince Mishal said the fair's higher committee discussed the formation of the executive, organization and security committees to start working immediately to prepare for the event. He said he was determined to make the fair a success and hoped it would contribute to the spread of knowledge and developing society. A number of Jeddah writers and authors have welcomed the fair and said they expect it to pick up where other book fairs in the Kingdom have ended. They also suggested those organizing the fair should consult others who have organized book fairs and benefit from their experience. The chairman of Jeddah Literary Club, Abdullah Bin Ouwaikil Al-Sulami, said he expects the fair to be a big event for the city, especially if preparation committees do their work thoroughly. "The fair should be an outstanding literary and cultural event,” Al-Sulami said. “It should not just be an occasion to display books but has to include poetic and cultural evenings to give it more color and make it different from other book fairs.” Saudi writer Zayed Al-Fidail asked organizers to establish the fair in a spacious area that is easily accessible. "The exhibition should fulfill the hopes and ambitions of the literary people in the region and should be a real addition that will satisfy both the exhibitors and visitors," he said.
