Sofphia bookstore

The ushering of the digital age has resulted in a huge leap in information and data gathering, as well as overall progress for mankind. But before such developments, public libraries and private bookstores where places to go when one sought knowledge and wisdom. While public libraries have been present in Kuwait since 1923, the current boom in information access through digital platforms has forced such facilities to fight an uphill battle for relevance.

Providing their response on the issue, a number of librarians and bookstore owners told KUNA that their facilities remain as beacons of knowledge and education despite all the circumstances and challenges. Official at Al-Faiha Public Library Fatima Al-Arada said that libraries are a huge part of the education process, helping countless knowledge seekers in the past and present to expand their horizons.

The Faiha Public Library and its counterpart in Khaldiya continue to serve their purpose despite the digital age, said Arada, who indicated that some public libraries, such as those in Aradiya and Kaifan, still conduct tours for school students to instill the importance of reading. She added that the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) continues to support public libraries, heeding their calls for development and progress.

Meanwhile, to compensate for the lack of physical material, the Kaifan Public Library began to digitize content to keep up with the current status quo. Kaifan library official Huda Al-Humaidan said publishers are keen on digitizing their products to appeal to the masses. She affirmed that such a step was a necessity to survive nowadays, stressing that the NCCAL and the ministry of education should provide more assistance to keep public libraries up-to-date.

Humaidan indicated that a lack of interest in reading was due to the advent of easy and on-the-go material, almost substituting books. She also blamed the current economic and political happenings in the region for driving people away from seeking books or heading to public libraries. Libraries and bookstores owned by the private sector do not fare any better, suffering from the dilemmas plaguing their public counterparts.

Razan Al-Marshad, a partner in Sophia bookstore, said the digital age was the least of the problems facing book lovers in Kuwait, because there are other matters, such as censorship, that keep dragging down public interest in reading and knowledge. To have a successful private bookstore, one must have a vast variety of books appealing to every age and gender, said Marshad, who indicated that most library costumers in her opinion were children and females.

Some private libraries and bookstores - such as Takween bookstore owned by Bothayna Al-Essa - are eager to have an extensive database of e-books. Having such a database, alongside physical books, is not necessarily a bad thing, because both formats complement each other, said Essa, who affirmed that any facility catering to the needs of knowledge seekers and students is a welcome sight in her opinion. The argument whether the digital age would kill libraries and bookstores might be subjective according to whom a person asks - however, such facilities seem to withstand the test of time as long as there are enthusiasts willing to open books. - KUNA