A literary contribution to healing

The eleventh edition of the Nairobi International Book Fair (NIBF) takes place at a time when the literary arena seems to be a undergoing a renaissance of sorts.

Literary space is expanding and today, not a week passes without a literary event taking place in and around Nairobi.

Going by the theme “Celebrating Diversity”, organizers of this year’s fair, which takes place between September 24 and 28, aim to contribute to national healing, following the violence that rocked the country after the divisive 2007 General Election.

Today, it is not uncommon to find Nairobi residents gathered at an entertainment spot listening to poetry recitals, story telling and prose-reading sessions.

Ironically though, none of these increasingly popular events are spearheaded by established publishing houses. This refreshing literary experience is the brainchild of Kwani Trust and Storymoja, relatively young entrants to the Kenya Publishers Association (KPA) fold, which organises NIBF.

Whereas past book fairs were largely a closed system run by conservative establishment types, the situation is slowly changing with new, younger entrants increasingly finding their voices in the scheme of things.

There seems to be a new-found synergy between the young and the old, and this is a big plus for the national book industry.

Mr Lawrence Njagi, is among the new entrants breathing fresh air in the literary field. He is the current chairperson of the NIBF sub-committee whose mandate is to ensure the smooth running of the fair.

“My committee is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that more Kenyans are aware of the book fair and that they do eventually come to see what is on offer,” he told Lifestyle adding that it is also within the sub-committee’s mandate to root for a vibrant reading culture among Kenyans.

Mr Njagi, who is the CEO of Mountain Top Publishers - a publishing house specialising in early childhood learning materials - is upbeat that the new-found synergy between new and established publishers will be reflected at this year’s fair.

“We want to prove that the old and the new can work together for the development of the book industry in the country,” he said.

Things have not always been that rosy, and there are lingering doubts that established publishers will be willing to cede space to newcomers.

This is partly informed by the fact that the lucrative textbook publishing is still dominated by the bigger, established publishing houses.

For a long time now, NIBF has come to be viewed as an exclusive textbook affair, with general publishing taking the back seat. This in effect means that lovers of general readership books feel left out.

Perhaps this is reflected by the traffic at the fair, which mainly consists school parties and parents. For giving too much preference to textbook publishing, at the expense of general publishing, established publishers have been accused of contributing to a poor reading culture in the country.