FEATURE

The Cozy Reading

From the history of Nizams to Harry Potter and archaeology to Lord of the rings, no matter what your preferred reading genre is, you cannot deny the solace a calm reading nook and a good book provides you with. It goes without saying that finding a book that wraps you in its warmth is easier than finding the right spot to enjoy that warmth. Thus, for the bookworm in you, we bring a list of all the wonderful libraries and book fairs in the city, with a book for every kind of reader. And what better than suggestions from our fellow readers? Happy reading!

By Sindhura Repaka

State Central Library

Constructed in 1891, State Central Library today stands as one of the most imposing structures in the city. It houses more than 5,00,000 books and magazines including books on science, technology, medicine, fiction, non-fiction, legal, history, world politics, etc. This library cannot be talked about without mentioning the 1 7,000 manuscripts, some of which even date back to the 5th century. With a reading room that is open for 24 hours, this biggest library in Hyderabad becomes a hub for book lovers. This beloved library was also granted heritage status in 1998 by INTACH, Hyderabad., Telangana State Central Library also has a tranquil area to prepare for competitive exams & several books and separate halls for newspapers & general literature by which, it attracts many students. Location: Afzal Gunj, Membership: Rs.150 Timings: 8 am–8 pm

City Central Library

Located in Chikkadpally City Central Library is the biggest library after the State Central library with 1000 students and 500 readers visiting the library every day. City Central Library was established in 1960 It is open on all days except public holidays and Mondays. Apart from the two floors that house books varying from academics, general, periodicals, references, preservations, and a children’s section, it also has an auditorium to conduct motivational speeches and inspiring lectures from dignitaries in different fields of expertise. Several ancient books reflect the respect that readers have had for this library since many books have been donated by learned scholars. If you are someone who likes to read under a tree like in classic movies, this library has you covered. You can enjoy your books in the shade of trees or indoors. Location: Chikkadpally Membership: Rs.150 Timings: 8 am–8 pm

Salar Jung Museum Library was opened to the public in 1961 by an Act of Parliament. The Salar Jung Museum Library includes a collection of books and manuscripts acquired by the Salar Jung family. The origin of some of the collections dates back to 1656 A.D. The rich collection of the Library consists of 62,772 printed books of which 41,208 are in English, 13,027 in Urdu, 1108 in Hindi, 1105 in Telugu, 3,576 in Persian, 2,588 in Arabic, and 160 in Turkish languages. The English printed books include research journals, albums of rare photographs, and valuable engravings. A paramount feature of this vast collection is that it covers a plethora of specialized fields of learning ranging from the fields of Art, Architecture, Archaeology, Physical, Biological, and Social Sciences, Literature, History, and Travel. It also includes a collection of religious books on Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, and other religions. The oldest book in the collection is an English volume printed in 1631 A.D. The library is constantly replenished with the latest arrivals covering subjects like Art, Sculpture, Paintings, Ceramic Arts, Decorative Arts, Museology, Tourism, etc. Location: Afzalgunj Entry fee: Rs.10 Timings: 10 am–5 pm

G P Birla Library

G P Birla Library is A world-class library located on the ground floor of G P Birla Centre with a vast collection of books which is a treasure trove for avid readers. This Library has an exclusive collection of books on Art, Archaeology, Architecture, Religion, History, Culture, Indology Numismatics, Museology, and other allied subjects. A rare collection of books on Ivory, Glass, Jade, and Porcelain in addition to encyclopedias and dictionaries of the world serve as important research. The uniqueness of this library is that it houses books of interest for people of all ages ranging from students to research scholars to retired persons, among others. Built on the historic Naubad Pahad next to the B M Birla Planetarium, you will love the serene and quiet atmosphere with the classy ambiance away from the pollution and noise of the city.

Location: Adarshnagar Timings: 10 am–8 pm

Vivekananda Library is located adjacent to the Vivekananda Auditorium and next to the office of the Vivekananda Institute of Languages. It has two sections: the General section and the Children’s section. With about 18,000 titles and a good collection of spiritual discourses on CDs, the General section of this library forms a great hub for knowledge. Apart from general books, the library has an exhaustive collection of books on Hinduism, Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Literature, Life & Work of Great Saints, Literature on Buddhism, Islam, Christianity (Mystics & Saints), Philosophy (Eastern & Western), Social Sciences, Psychology & Mental Science, Literature, Ayurveda & other Alternative Medicine, World History & Indian History, Biographies of Saints, Sages, Freedom fighters, and Great Scientists and Great Personalities of the world. The reading room which has about 112 journals and periodicals is free for use and open to everyone. Location: Lower Tank bund Road Membership: Rs.100 Timings: 9 am–6 pm

Book fairs: Hyderabad National Book

If you are an avid reader of Hyderabad, this book fair needs no introduction. The Hyderabad Book Fair was first held in the year 1985 at City Central Library in which only a few essential publishers and Booksellers participated. After an enormous response from the book lovers and the people of Hyderabad, the Book Fairs were held at Nizam College Grounds, Public Gardens, Exhibition Grounds, and Keshav Memorial High School Ground. For the last four years, it has been continuously running at Telangana Kala Bharati (NTR Grounds). This book fair also stands as a stage for book releases, writers’ meet and greet literary events, and children’s art showcase. This fair brings to people a large variety of books including different languages at reasonable prices. The Hyderabad Book Fair is perfect for readers who have a strong yearning for English novels as well as Indian literature enthusiasts. From global best sellers and classics to regional writers, there is a book for everyone in this gold mine of books.

Location: Lower Tank bund Road Website: hyderabadbookfair.com

Book chor’s ‘Lock The Box’ and Kitablover's ‘Load The Box’ are well-known book fairs with this concept of the book fair. If you are unfamiliar with how it works, here’s a breakdown. You pay for the box and you get to take home any number of books that you get to fit in that box. The only catch is that the box has to close flat. The prices of the boxes vary with sizes – small, medium, and large. Usually, these fairs also host interesting small stores from local businesses ranging from bookmarks to snacks and other knickknacks. These usually happen in different parts of the city varying from year to year. One can find pre-owned books, new books, magazines, and children’s books ranging in genres like Fantasy, Non-Fiction, Romance, and Crime.

Instagram: @book.chor

Book recommendations:

Fatima H

Artist and Biotechnologist

As an ardent fiction reader, my current favorite author/obsession is Fredrik Backman. He is a Swedish writer who writes in such a beautiful and heartwarming way and his characters warm your heart instantly. His super cute Instagram account, where he posts about his daily life, mostly fangirling over his wife, is just a bonus (@backmansk). His book, Anxious People, has been made into a Netflix series, but A Man called Ove & Britt-Marie Was Here are two of his best books which I’d recommend to everyone! Another book the internet-verse seems to still be obsessed with was The Silent Patient, by Alex Michedelis, an excellent and fastpaced thriller, set around a mental patient silenced by her trauma, yet seeking justice against those who wronged her nonetheless. And speaking of obsessed writers on the internet-verse - one cannot skip Colleen Hoover, but I found her work to be hit-or-miss. Her famous ‘It Ends with Us’ was disappointing to me, but she redeemed it by the end, staying true to the title, I believe! But her other book, Verity, is just hard to put down apparently and is the next on my reading list! If non-fiction is your thing - I’d recommend neurosurgeon Paul Kalanathi’s autobiographical account, When Breath becomes Air - it is a stunning, heart-wrenching, and remarkable book about his life, his illness, and how the priorities and ideas of life change when death starts to hover around, and in his case, it was way too soon.

Design Engineer

I picked up an interest/hobby of reading books after my graduation. I like reading books of the fictional genre. My recent read books which I liked and would recommend reading are ‘Before the coffee gets cold’ and ‘Anxious People’. In a nutshell, Before the coffee gets cold is about a cafe that helps you to travel through time. It's a story about people who have had regrets in their lives and have the desire to correct them. This read keeps you hooked up till the very end and makes you feel all kinds of emotions. The story in Anxious People by Matt Haig revolves around a bank robbery that never happened. The main characters are connected by some incidents that happened in the past. This book tries to emphasize the fact that at times the cause behind people's beliefs or traits are circumstances they have been through. This at times even leads them to take desperate actions.

Instagram: @ rum_ki_kalam

Sarah Jameel

Public Health Coordinator, IIIT-Hyderabad

I have always believed that watching too much TV and socializing too much were not so productive activities, but would I be able to justify if reading fiction, alpha male romances, and princess diaries were not a loss of productive hours? Reading for me is a feeling of gratitude and presence and is what brings me the most joy. Enid Blyton and Daniel Defoe were some of the first authors that roped me into believing that a POTPOURRI of adventures exists, of how books can be my gateway into a magical world hidden behind the simplicity of pages. Along this journey, I have always come across people who believe that reading non-fiction is more productive, and when you have a motivation like that, you only want to do more of what’s not to be done. Fictional stories are a prerequisite for literacy attainment, feeding a world of imagination to create a world of the future. It’s like a play of pleasure that allows us to explore the roles in our imagination. It creates for you the freedom to read it in the order it presents itself or read it in the order we please. If you would ask me which author would top my list of best fiction reads, I’d be heard screaming Murakami. No author for me enriches our knowledge of magical realism the way his pages speak. You can reach out to me on Instagram if you ever wish to debate why non-fictions score better reads.

Instagram: @ theschoolnerd5

Senior Financial Analyst and Micro Fiction Writer

This Is a Relatable Story. “There are opportunities that come and go, like the trains on this very track. You can climb on any train and it will take you down a new path. But you need to decide which platform to stand on and which train is the one that is the most important for you.” These were my favorite lines from the novel 'This is not your story by Savi Sharma. It is a story of 4 lives (Shaurya, Miraya, Anubhav, and Kasturi), who were entangled with the problems in their own lives, yet managed to pursue their dreams. A smooth story within which a lot of emotions and feelings were imbibed. Writer narration is depicted perfectly in three parallel voices of Shaurya, Miraya's Diary, and Anubhav. Anubhav and Shaurya were two dismal and Counteractive characters for my taste. The story starts with Shaurya from Jaipur's backdrop. Everything about Jaipur was graciously narrated. The middle part was nicely written, however, I felt some part of it was boring while most of the time the story kept me hooked with the thought of 'what happened next?' Don't expect too many twists and turns but the emotions and feelings in the story keep you engaged throughout. The climax was convincing. The overall story has the essence of Savi Sarma's magical and motivational quotes.

Instagram: @ being_sv

Chandana Manuri

Software Developer

Whenever people ask me to recommend the books, I immediately start thinking about how I can sound intelligent or cool through my selection of books but I’d be lying if I say those were my favorites. Favorites are the books that pull us into their world as often as possible. For me, it’s A Court of Thorns And Roses series By Sarah J Mass. We follow Feyre on her adventure of survival and love in this retelling of Beauty and the Beast that is set in the fascinating world of Faeries and humans. Feyre is a hunter who is struggling for her and her family's survival. While the first book is great, Book 2 sealed the deal for me. With the 'found family' trope in Book 2, we are introduced to one of my favorite bunch of people, and the romance, friendship, adventure, and characterization are all just absolutely fantastic. The mental health representation is excellent and I love the fact that the characters heal through friendship. With politics, disputes, and war, the series only keeps getting bigger and bigger. Though the series is not without its faults with its sometimes-flawed writing and some not very great character arcs, it became my haven. My escape from reality. Hoping someone will also find their haven, I will be eagerly waiting for Book 6.

Instagram: @ chandnamanuri

Nutritionist

Passion for reading is one of the greatest blessings indeed. Books are magical and take you on a tour around the world. Out of the numerous amazing books I have been reading in my years of reading journey, these two books I am about to recommend have stayed with me ever since I read them. The first one is called “Forty Rules of Love” by Elif Shafak. Forty Rules of Love is a fiction that revolves around the concepts of spirituality, Sufism, and love. The way this book has been designed made it interesting and appealing to me personally. The book's plot is set in the year 2008 with the story of Mrs. Ella Rubinstein who is reading a book called “Sweet Blasphemy” which takes the reader back to the year 1200. This is where you are introduced to Rumi and his spiritual companion Shams Tabrizi. Overall, Forty Rules of Love is more of a philosophical narrative that opens up new horizons on spirituality and love. The next book that is my absolute favorite is “Tuesdays With Morrie” by Mitch Albom. The tagline of the title - “An old man, a young man and life’s greatest lessons” gives the readers a zest of what the story is all about. Tuesdays With Morrie is a story of a professor - Morrie Schwartz and his student - Mitch. It is during the very last stage of the old professor’s life that he reunites with and gives Mitch the most important lessons. These lessons address the most important aspects of life, including love, fear, acceptance, human relationships, the usual thought cycle, and much more. The book forces you to recall all those moments you might have wasted and fills you with a sense of gratitude.

Instagram: @ the_day_dreamers_diary

Afrah Taher

Nutritionist

Alia's Mission by Mark Alan Stamaty is an illustrated book that stayed with me for a while after reading it. She was a librarian. So when the war broke out and she sensed her books were in danger she went above and beyond to save them. Very inspiring, all the more because it's true. A huge fan of Jannat Ke Patte by Nimrah Ahmed. It is a pretty long novel (almost 800+ pages). I have tried reading it as an audiobook but since it's too long my listeners gradually declined and I stopped. The transformation of Haya as she experiences life at every stage is very inspiring. My favorite part is her interactions with Ayesha and of course Jihan..(her love interest). All in all, it’s a good read. Kind warning in advance, it’s addictive.

Instagram: @ afrahbintaher