Colourful covers, bright illustrations and popular characters are once again drawing children and teenagers to the annual Amar Ekushey Book Fair, but many parents say rising prices and concerns over content quality are dampening their enthusiasm.
A visit to several stalls selling illustrated children’s books on Thursday, the 15th day of the fair, revealed parents carefully browsing through books before often leaving without making purchases after checking the price tags.
Many parents said that even short storybooks with only a few pages are now beyond the reach of ordinary buyers.
Saiful Islam, who came to the fair from Mirpur with his school-going son, said he had planned to buy several storybooks but was forced to limit his purchases.
“I wanted to buy a few storybooks for my child from the fair, but the price of each book is so high that in the end I could not buy more than two or three,” he said.
Another visitor, Nadia Parveen from Banani, echoed similar concerns. She said some children’s books with only a small number of pages were being sold for between Tk200 and Tk400.
“When the prices of children’s books are this high, parents also lose interest in buying them,” she said.
Apart from price, parents also expressed worries about the quality of the books. According to Nadia Parveen, ensuring affordability should go hand in hand with maintaining quality.
“Many books use thin paper or contain storylines that are not suitable for children. That also reduces their interest in reading,” she added.
Reader Rumana Akter questioned the originality of many books displayed at the fair. She said some publications lacked depth in storytelling, while slightly modified versions of familiar tales were being repeatedly marketed as new books.
“In some cases, the language used in the books does not match children’s age and mindset,” she said, stressing that such issues can discourage young readers from developing a reading habit.
People involved in publishing, however, said rising production costs are a major factor behind the higher prices of children’s books.
Imran Hasan, a sales worker at Knowledge Media Publication, explained that books designed for children usually require thicker and coloured paper to ensure durability.
“Children’s books have to be printed on slightly thicker and coloured paper; otherwise they tear easily. That is mainly why the price is a bit higher,” he said.
Shahin Ahmed of Chotoder Shomoy Prokashoni said the price of their books is also influenced by the cost of illustrations.
“In many of our books, the illustrations are hand-drawn, which increases the production cost,” he said. He also alleged that pirated books in the market are harming both the quality and sales of original publications.
Thursday marked the 15th day of the book fair organised by Bangla Academy. As it was not a weekly holiday, the number of visitors was relatively lower than on other days.
According to the fair’s information centre, a total of 82 new books were submitted on Thursday. The fair remained open from 2:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
Several cultural and literary events were also held on the fair grounds. At 3:00 pm, a discussion titled In Remembrance: Mustafa Zaman Abbasi took place on the main stage. A paper written by Sharmini Abbasi was presented by Bangla Academy official Mokarram Hossain, while Ashrafuzzaman Babu participated in the discussion and Wakil Ahmed chaired the session.
In the “Lekhok Bolchi” segment, writers Atahar Khan, Fazlul Haque Tuhin and Jamshed Wazed discussed their books.
On Friday, the weekly holiday, the fair will open earlier at 11:00 am and continue until 9:00 pm. A children’s session will be held, and prizes for winners of drawing, recitation and music competitions for children and adolescents will be distributed at 10:30 am.
Later in the afternoon, a discussion titled In Remembrance: Badruddin Umar will take place at 3:00 pm, followed by a cultural programme scheduled for 4:00 pm.
