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The fair went on for several more days - to get an idea of the variety of events, please look at these photos taken by the young British photographer,  Kate Stanworth :  Somaliland goes crazy for books And listen to my From Our Own Correspondent on BBC Radio Four:  Book Fair FOOC The book fair team Here's the script for my From Our Own Correspondent: (INTRODUCTION: Think of Somalia and what springs to mind? Perhaps pirates? Famine? Violence inspired by Al Qaeda? The country has come top of the list of the world's most failed states -- compiled by the US Fund for Peace -- for six years in a row. But in one corner of Somalia -- the north-western territory of Somaliland -- Mary Harper found the situation to be strikingly different:) Macbeth. Crime and Punishment. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. War and Peace.  No, I am not standing in the Classics section of a bookshop in London or New York. I am standing on Somali soil -- or should I say sand -- at the Hargeisa Inter...

"It is a marvellous thing" The day started with readings in Somali and English of the great Somalia poem Daalacan or 'Clarity' written by Hadrawi. The hall was packed. Those who couldn't fit in crowded around the windows or gathered around a big screen outside which had a live feed of the event. Books for sale at the fair  The Scottish/ British poet W. N. Herbert, who helped translate Hadrawi's poems for the book 'The Poet and the Man', started by saying that it was a "marvellous thing" that "poetry is at the heart of Somali culture" in a way he had never before encountered. He said he had come to Somaliland on a 'poet's pilgrimage'.  Bill Herbert said he could access the spirit of Daalacan because what was happening to him now was, in some ways, similar to what was happening to Hadrawi during the time of Siad Barre. He talked about a government that didn't care about its people, about corruption.   Hadrawi then stoo...

This year's Hargeisa International Book Fair is bigger than ever. The theme is 'Journey'. Kenya is the guest country. There are Somali authors, academics, poets, singers, dancers, photographers and artists in abundance. Plus those from many other parts of the world including Nigeria, Djibouti, Kenya, Holland, Italy, and the UK. And a supermodel from Czechoslovakia.  Click this link to see the programme of events:  Hargeisa Book Fair 2013   The first day started with the national anthem and a welcoming speech by the organiser of the fair, Jama Musse Jama. And the Nigerian author, Chuma Nwokolo, noticing what some of the Somali men were wearing:  A Sartorial Hargeisa There was standing room only as the great Somali poet, Hadrawi, recited Sirta Nolosha (Life's Essence). Standing room only for Hadrawi Hadrawi in full flow Hadrawi Some funny looking men appeared, thick set and wearing earpieces. Confused looking man arrives at the book fair Photographing the confused loo...

On Wednesday 7 August 2013, Kenya's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport caught fire. The huge blaze destroyed the arrivals hall in what is the busiest airport in East and Central Africa, handling six million passengers a year. The BBC website put up some dramatic pictures of the fire:  The airport blaze   I flew into Jomo Kenyatta airport early on the morning of 12 August. I didn't know what to expect, but was delighted to see some beautiful white tents as I emerged bleary-eyed and bewildered from my overnight flight. My fellow passengers on the tarmac Immigration was in an enormous white tent. It was lovely to stand in much shorter queues than usual. The air was fresh and crisp. The light was natural. Much better than the usual sticky, smelly lines inside the airport's musty arrival hall, fluorescent lights casting ghastly flickers on people's tired and crumpled faces. The immigration officials worked efficiently, with fiery lamps to keep them warm We then went into th...