It was seen that the students were very interested in the book fair held in Gaziantep. Starting on May 9 and ending on Sunday, May 14 which 85 publishing houses participated in ‘Gaziantep 2nd Book Fair’.

The students who spoke to ILKHA about the book fair, noted that the fairs increased the interest of people in books and that the rate of reading books at low rates decreased with fairs.

Fatih Astekin, a high school student came to the fair with his friends, stated that he is very pleased with the book fair and recommended that young people to read books instead of social media, which is widely used today.

“We should turn to books instead of social media”

Astekin who expressed that the fair benefits students, said, “The book fair is really beautiful. Fairs allow people to increase their interest in books. People find books here they cannot other stores. I think people should turn to books instead of social media. Even if they are not in books, they can turn to comics that they love. Because social media is slowing people down as well as reducing their knowledge. Reading books instead of social media can be productive.”

Emre Keskin stated that he is satisfied with the arrangement of such an exhibition in Gaziantep and said, “This fair is very good for both our students and our adults. I am happy for Gaziantep. It's a very nice feeling for me. I hope it was a good feeling among other student friends. I like to read books. Reading books improves our knowledge base. I usually like to read such funny, exciting and action books.”

Mehmet Melih Bulut, also stated that the having of the book fair in Gaziantep is not only for the students but also for everyone, emphasized that reading the book should be a habit.

“Reading a book is very useful”

Kaan Dogan stated that he came to the fair with his teachers and his school friends, said, “Everyone should come to the book fair. Book prices are affordable. I think everyone must come to this fair. I like reading and I recommend reading. It is very useful to read books.”

Fethi Bucak said that he came to fair for loving to read books, said, “I found it very nice to have the book fair. I was glad to be here. I will take my books and read them. Reading a book rests a person's soul. I find it nice to read a book. Therefore, opening this fair was very useful.”

Sara Nur and Ömer Yilmaz, students from Imam Hatip Hight School, stated that the fair is very useful and they had the opportunity to get books which hard to find.

50 thousand people visited the book fair in the first three days

On the other hand, the second book fair in Gaziantep, which is expected to be over 100 thousand visitors this year, was visited by 50 thousand people in the first three days, increased by 27 percent compared to the previous year and continues with the signing days of the interviews and authors. (İbrahim Koçyiğit - ILKHA)