KARACHI, March 16: The on-going Cricket World Cup, Muharram and the threat of a possible war against Iraq have kept buyers away from the book bazaar which is held on the lawns of Frere Hall every Sunday.
Sellers of second-hand books at the bazaar told Dawn on Sunday that sale of books about the Middle East had gone up now that a US-led invasion of Iraq was probable. They added that parents were not bringing children, who largely bought magazines, comics and general knowledge books, to the bazaar of late. They pointed out that children usually came during vacations.
“It all began with the so-called Million March organized by religious political parties on March 2 (Sunday) to condemn American war plans against Iraq. There was a lot of confusion among booksellers whether they should set up their stalls or not. Then began Muharram. The sale of books always dip with the advent of Muharram.”
A bookseller, who sells historical books, told Dawn that he was very happy about the rekindling of interest in books on the Middle East. “I have sold at least four copies of Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence. Interestingly, the National Geographic issue which contains a detailed article on Lawrence has also been in greater demand. I had a dog-eared book on Gertrude Bell which nobody was interested in. The other day a bespectacled gentleman bought the book. Since the gentleman is a regular, I asked him why he was buying the book. He told me that Gertrude Bell was a powerful official of the British administration in Baghdad after the First World War, and she ensured that an Arab state was founded from the three Ottoman provinces of Mosul, Baghdad and Basra, but one which was too weak to be independent of Britain.”
Another bookseller said he expected a smaller turnout the next Sunday when the Cricket World Cup final would be played. “It is ironical that more people began coming to the Sunday book bazaar when Pakistan made an unceremonious exit from the Cricket World Cup.”
A bookseller said their business was adversely affected by power failures after nightfall. “Last Sunday we have had a power failure. Naturally buyers leave Frere Hall in the event of a power failure. I fail to understand why the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation cannot make special arrangements to ensure uninterrupted electric supply to the Sunday book bazaar when overall power load is less than what it is on weekdays. Power went off twice that night during the peak business hours.”
Following the June 14, 2002 bomb blast in front of the US consulate, the authorities closed the Sunday book bazaar. After a few months of dislocation, the book bazaar came back to Frere Hall on October 20, 2002.
City government officials told Dawn on Sunday that generally more than 50 booksellers set up their stalls on the lawns of Frere Hall. “These booksellers organize the book bazaar on a self-help basis. That is to say, they divide among themselves the expenditure of furniture and electricity.”
