By Sainabou Sambou
Fatou Camara Junior, author of ‘Her Virginity’, has initiated first ever ‘Book fair Africa’ in The Gambia. The fair was held on Saturday, the 25th of November 2023, at the Bakadaji Hotel in Kololi, where budding and prominent writers and authors from Senegal and The Gambia showcased their literary works.
Speaking about the initiative, Ms. Camara explained that the idea came up while she was having a conversation with a friend, to whom she expressed her desire to popularize her newly published novel (Her Virginity) and to expose the works of upcoming writers through a fair, as a source of motivation. She said there are many authors like Momodou Sabally, author of ‘Jangi Jollof’ and Fafa Maybe, who people don’t know much about.“It was when I started the idea of book fair that I came to know about other authors,” she added.
Ms Camara said this was the beginning of her journey in the literary realm and promised that the next book fair Africa will be a massive one.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Alagie Jarju, Executive Director of National Youth Council, who represented the Minister of Youth and Sports, said that despite the ugly stories of unemployment and irregular immigration the young people in The Gambia have a lot celebrate. He said in the creative industr young people are doing great things and that the government is committed to empowering the youth to realise their potentials.
Both Momodou Sabally, former Secretary General and Head of Civil Service and writer; and Dr. Cherno Omar Barry, President of Gambia Writers’ Association emphasized the culture of reading in The Gambia saying that one cannot be a good writer without reading good books.
