Almuntada Show – AlEkhbariah TV Channel

Almuntada is a live show on AlEkhbariah TV Channel presented by Fahad Alhaqbani that talks about society news regarding art, culture, and literature. The novelist Asim Altokhais was the guest of the show on March 24th. The discussion of the episode was about educational cafés that provide their customers with a variety of books in which many Saudi youths are attracted to spend their time reading in the café.

The writer Asim declared his opinion and vision about the present and the future of these kinds of cafés through answering the questions he was asked. First, he emphasized the benefits of this idea as it offers a comfortable and relaxing setting for the readers besides enjoying a cup of coffee. It is also a place where the person can only sit with the book and himself.

Then, he was asked if the book can travel to the people instead of only finding it on the library shelves. He answered that in Europe the book can be found in public places including parks where people exchange their books to have the opportunity to read various types of books for free. Hence, following this strategy in Saudi Arabia would be beneficial for the public.

The writer Asim Altokhais believes that the emerging young authors have created a new style that attracts the youth to read it, and those authors should be supported to be known, as in the Riyadh International Book Fair. He also highlighted that though the reading culture has been spreading as a trend, the Saudi youth are not forced to read. In contrast, they are choosing the book based on their interests and they are enjoying it.

Additionally, Asim aspires that the cafés will be, one day, a place for authors and readers’ meetings and discussions, plus having more organized public libraries in every neighborhood that includes a special section for children as they are the nucleus of the community.

In conclusion, the novelist Asim Altokhais believes that these youth readers could be tomorrow writers since writing is a way to express feelings and thoughts.