A blogger a number of years ago cited an alleged Unesco statistic stating that Thais only read eight lines per year compared to the five books a year Singaporeans and Vietnamese read. I couldn't find the statistic anywhere but a former editor for Guru also wrote in one of her past editor's note that the National Statistic Office reported in 2005 that Thais read an average of just seven lines a year. However, the Unesco site which you can check out has traced that illiteracy has begun declining in 2015 so perhaps the seven-lines-per-year has improved. But why in the world am I talking about Thailand's literacy rates when we usually talk about food or Uncle Tu's latest blunders in this magazine? Well, today is actually World Book Day, and we're listing out a few things you can do to celebrate the occasion -- and perhaps also keep that upward trajectory on the Unesco stat going. So choose a cozy spot and get ready to bury your nose in a few pages as we celebrate World Book Day 2021.
Cosplay a literary character
Back in kindergarten, my school celebrated "Reading Day" and had students dress up as book characters. Unwittingly, the teachers made us cosplay back when cosplay wasn't officially a thing yet. So what better way to celebrate World Book Day than cosplaying a few of your favourite characters from your favourite novels and posting them online? With the pandemic, it's also a great safe alternative to going out. Now for those of you who have never even thought or done cosplay, the prospect of it may seem daunting especially if you know people who do it professionally. But you don't have to pull off a complicated, professional-looking cosplay if you don't want to. Take a look through your closet and see if you can find stuff that would work, or you can be creative and put your own twist to a classic character. If the BBC can do a modern Sherlock, why can't you cosplay a female Sherlock or do a modern take on Dr. Jekyll? Fancy doing something different? Forego the characters and cosplay the authors instead. Seriously, we're waiting on your Stephen King cosplays. Send them to our DMs, please.
Sherlock Holmes.
Stephen King.
Visit a library
A visit to the library is a no-brainer in celebrating World Book Day but you may be wondering if there are even libraries in Bangkok aside from libraries found in educational institutions. You'll be surprised to discover that yes, the City of Angels actually does have a couple of libraries that you should definitely check out and should spread the word about because more people should be aware there are libraries in the city! First, pay a visit to the Bangkok City Library (BangkokCityLibrary.com), which is in the area of Bangkok Old Town near the Grand Palace, a fitting location for the city's official library. However, don't be fooled: the library is modern in design and houses not just books in Thai and English but are also exhibiting some pieces, which makes the library partly a museum. Second, visit the iconic Nielson Hays Library (fb.com/NielsonHaysLibrary). Not only does it house a vast number of English books available for borrow (you can also sign up for a membership!), but the library itself is steeped in history and has been opened since 1922. That's only a few years after the end of World War I! They also hold occasional events though most of them have been put on hold due to the pandemic so make sure to follow them on FB to keep up to date on any upcoming activities.
Bangkok City Library.
Nielson Hays Library.
Buy books from an indie bookstore
For bookworms like me, heading over to Kinokuniya or Asia Books to satisfy our need for pages is the easy and convenient thing to do. However, there are also a couple of indie bookshops you can visit to stray away from the mainstream retail booksellers. Think of it like you're championing The Shop Around The Corner instead of Fox Books in the movie You've Got Mail. A frequent haunt for many foreigners in the city is Dasa Book Cafe (DasaBookCafe.com) on Sukhumvit Road. At first glance, it seems to be a small bookshop but it actually has multiple floors with shelves filled to the brim with secondhand books. Yes, the books here are pre-loved, which means you can get them at a ridiculously low price. Alternatively, head over to Passport Bookshop (bit.ly/3sE9NNL) at Prasumeru Road where you can browse books all about Southeast Asia. On top of that, they also serve great coffee and tea so be prepared to spend an extended time getting lost in the pages of a great book while sipping on a cuppa.
Dasa Book Cafe.
Passport Bookshop.
Read some free books
Arguably the best way to commemorate World Book Day is to do just what it's celebrating: read a book! We've already listed some shops you could visit to buy yourself some new books or even libraries you can go to so you can borrow some, but if you're strapped for cash and don't really have the budget to buy new books, don't sweat it. Head over to ManyBooks.net and you'll find huge library of e-books ready to be downloaded to your device and completely free of charge. Their library is separated into categories to make it easier for you to find what you're looking for and they also offer discounts when you sign up. If you don't want to go through the hassle of looking through genre after genre for a book that catches your fancy, BookBub.com will do the hard work for you. This free service will send you recommendations based on your preference so you get deals for the books that might interest you right in your inbox. On top of that, they also notify you of free e-books that might be right in your alley that you can download. Finally, if you prefer novels of the graphic kind ("graphics" meaning "drawings" and not "violence"), Comixology.com is the best site to go to for your comic book fix. Granted, you need to pay to be able to access their full library, but they also have a great number of free comic books for you to download right off the bat. If you're one of the people who say comics aren't real books because they have "pictures", kindly stop judging what people read and sod off.
Help get books to others!
It's easy for us to take for granted the fact that books are so easily accessible for us who live in the city or have a steady income. But those who are less fortunate or who live in rural areas have a harder time so it's just right that this World Book Day, we actually extend some help to them. There's a great NGO that goes by the name Bookworm Foundation. Since being founded in 2010, it has been going to different places around the country providing mobile library services and promoting reading to both children and adults with and without disabilities in rural areas. Its founder is Japanese national Yoshimi Horiuchi, a bookworm who is blind and saw the need of bringing books to rural areas of the country. You can visit their website at AlwaysReadingCaravan.org and you donate money through there. They are also accepting specific book donations so check their website to see if there are any books you can give them that they can add to their library.
