JEDDAH, 28 February 2006 — The British Council in Riyadh kicked off an English-language book club yesterday. The club, which marks the first cooperation between the British Council and the King Abdul Aziz Library, will initially be a meeting of minds to discuss books.
Each month participants will discuss a different book. Yesterday, members of the club read and discussed Aldous Huxley’s 1932 book “Brave New World”, which explores the concept of an “ideal” engineered society.
The cooperation came after the library showed interest in establishing a book club for English literature.
The book club, which will meet in the KAL, is open to anyone interested in reading and would like to share their views.
The book club will provide an intellectual opportunity to explore the diversity of books, diversity in the writing styles, content and relevance to today’s societies, said Karen Daly-Gherabi, assistant director of British Council in the Kingdom. “It is a wonderful opportunity for inter-cultural relations putting people in touch and opening dialogue,” she said.
The book club will also allow literary minds to meet and exchange ideas. “Although reading is a solitary activity, when a book has moved or simulated you it’s natural to want to discuss it with someone else,” Daly-Gherabi said.
Some authors are expected to participate in the future with lectures and readings.
“We also hope that in the future we might be linked to activities with events such as the World Book Day or the Riyadh Book Fair,” said Daly-Gherabi.
