Are you a book lover? Do you wish you had an entire library to yourself that you can access anytime?
Do you dream of having a huge cupboard full of books in your room? I bet if you even have the slightest regard towards reading, the place I am about to show you will pique your interest to the max.
Welcome to the ‘Book Market of Iraq, where books remain in the street at night because Iraqis say: “The reader does not steal and the thief does not read.”
I know you did not expect this kind of thinking coming from a troubled country like Iraq, but here it is. The Al-Mutanabbi Street or Iraq book market which is located in Baghdad, near the old quarter at Al Rasheed Street portrays the most unbelievable of book markets that have ever existed.
This Iraqi book market is referred to as ‘the heart and soul of Baghdad’s literacy and intellectual community’. Iraqi book market was also known for being the Baghdad’s first book traders’ market.
Al-Mutanabbi Street has been the historic heart and soul of Baghdad’s literary and intellectual society since time past. Because of Al-Mutanabbi Street’s or the book market in Iraq never-ending supply of books, it functioned as a contemporary witness to Mesopotamia’s never -ending political and cultural developments throughout the years.
Al Mutanabbi Street, the book market in iraq and the heart of intellectual life, is at the core of that revitalization. King Faisal I named Al-Mutanabbi Street after the famed 10th-century poet Abul Tayeb al-Mutanabbi, who was born under the Abbasid dynasty in what would become modern-day Iraq.
Al-Mutanabbi is regarded as one of the greatest Arabic poets of all time. One of the disciplines that define the Arab people is the art of Arabic poetry. It is distinctive in the vast realm of global poetry.
I am the one whose literature can be seen (even) by the blind
Al- Mutannabi
& whose words are heard (even) by the deaf.
The steed, the night & the desert all know me
As do the sword, the spear, the scripture & the pen
Book market in Iraq spreads all along the street and thousands of people gather here every day, to bag in some of those prized books that are laid out unsupervised most of the time.
But no one steals them, no one grabs the books and runs away without paying. That’s the beauty of this book market Iraq. And it is every bit magical considering the amount of violence present in the country, don’t you think?
Also Read: 11 Ancient & Creepy Books Of All Times
Sadly, the history of this Iraqi book market is not as beautiful and peaceful as it looks. On March 5, 2007, a car bomb exploded on this book street and killed more than 26 people. It left the area littered and unsafe for shoppers and destroyed many businesses. But the locals didn’t lose hope. After a year of repair and cleanup, the street was reopened with the same enthusiasm about literature.
Apart from being famous for its book market, Mutanabbi street is also known for a cafe. The name of the cafe is “Shabandar’s Cafe”. And the manager ‘Al Khashali’ is also one hell of a personality.
In the bomb blast that happened on this Iraq book market, he lost four sons and a grandson but somehow he survived. He is now 85 years old and sits at the helm, exactly a century after his great-great-great-grandfather first founded the cafe in 1917.
Also Read: 10 Books That Have Given Me Better Perspective Towards Life
This cafe is very well-known gathering place for intellectual people back in its glory days. It mostly included Iraqi poets, playwrights, philosophers, dissenters, and even politicians. Today, it is the beacon of a reminder of those times and has turned into a famous tourist attraction.
In Conclusion:
Even though this Iraq book market hasn’t got entirely back to its former glory, people are trying their best to keep up the liveliness. By promoting tourism and the love for books through this book street, Baghdad is doing pretty well. On the other hand, it really ignites respect in my heart for people who live and work for the betterment of the future of their youth by offering them such an inspirational market where books are left unattended.
Because they truly believe, ‘A reader never steals and a thief never reads’.
Oh, how I wish there was such a market in India.
