The project director,
Port Harcourt World Book Capital Project, Mrs Koko Kalango says the monthly book discussions on books chosen as “book of the mouth” is intended to change the value system of the Nigerian youths for better.
Stating this recently in an exclusive interview with The Tide during the August, 2014 “book of the month” discussion and drama sketch in presidential Hotel, Kalango said the discussions and drama sketches based on selected books is aimed at bringing back the reading culture in Nigeria.
She recalled the period before the advert of videos and cable network in Rivers State when the in-thing was theaters which showed dramas on book written by Nigerian authors, noting that discussion then was mostly based on critigues on such books and or the characters in them.
“The plan to focus a book every month is to not only get the society to focus on a book each month, but also to enable society read and see how the things read applies to our daily individual, group, Local Government Area, State and national lives.
“So, it is not just for the sake of reading, but how reading can make us appreciate our society better and for the good of all”, she said.
According to her, one of the key problems of the Nigeria society is the issue of value system.
“The value of money is a problem. Our children and children’s children are really in trouble. That is why we are trying through books, to catch them young.
We are running about 200 book clubs through out this year in 100 schools in Port Harcourt, both at the primary and secondary school levels, “she stated.
The August 2014 book of the month was “Tomorrow Died today”, written by Chiemeka Garrick’s. It portrayed the trouble in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria warranted by oil exploration and its attendant exploitation.
The drama sketch was based on one of Wole Soyinka’s book which portrayed the propensity of the rich Nigerian who prefers to send his children to schools abroad and problems associated with children being influential by the foreign culture.