Hong Kong Book Fair 2014 (16/07/2014 ~ 22/07/2014)
| Venue | ： | Children Paradise Performance Stage, Hall 3E, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Expo Drive, Wan Chai |
Review
It was wonderful to meet many of you at our booth at Hong Kong Book Fair 2014. A warm welcome to those who have just become our members!
"Planting the seeds of reading" was Blooming Club's slogan at Hong Kong Book Fair 2014.
From 16 – 22 July, we were at our booth to help parents plant the seeds of reading this summer. We had a great time speaking to hundreds of parents and children some of whom were babies and toddlers in their buggies, some were beginner, emergent or fluent readers. Regardless, we were there to speak to everyone who came through to understand their reading needs and to recommend books most appropriate for them from our selection. We always enjoyed the interaction as it was a great opportunity to find out what our readers love to read.
As always, non-fiction novelties were in great demand at Blooming Club. Many parents who wanted their children to have more knowledge of the world around them in a fun way found themselves equally attracted to the beautifully designed and illustrated pop-ups with many flaps to lift and to pull. If young children are introduced to such fabulous books at an early age, it will be a wonder if they do not love books. It gave us so much pleasure to see parents and children bonding through books! (See book fair photos above and top 20 title list below)
Picture books are always popular at the fair. Apart from bestselling authors such as Julia Donaldson, Oliver Jeffers, Eric Carle, Eric Hill, Dr. Suess, we had brilliantly illustrated books by renowned authors such as Peter Brown, Peter Reynolds. Abie Longstaff, Alex Latimer and Brad Meltzer of Ordinary People Change the World series to delight our readers.
Apart from books, young readers had extra fun when they came to our booth during the weekend as Clifford the Big Red Dog was there to greet them and to take picture with them.
When Sarah Brennan, bestselling author of The Chinese Calendar Tales, came to meet and greet her readers on Friday 18 July, there was quite a bit of excitement when some of her unexpected fans found her there! Handing out her exquisitely designed book marks to visitors, Sarah warmly invited them to swear (like the scout and girl guides) that they would visit her website in the evening! We have no doubt she has left a lasting impression.
This year was the Blooming Club's fifth year at Hong Kong Book Fair and a very special one for us. Unlike in the past year, the majority of the books sold were for younger readers of up to about nine-years-old, we saw a tremendous increase in the 9 – 12 fiction category most suitable for upper primary to lower secondary! It was because our regular visitors have grown and many of whom were looking for something different. They were so thrilled to find something special – Out of My Mind by Sharon D. Draper, The Abominable by Eva Ibbotsen, Stay Where You Are and Then Leave by John Boyne and Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage as well as Flora and Ulysseus by Kate DiCamillo (famously known in Hong Kong for The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane because it was read by the protagonist in a popular Korean drama), to name just a few. It gave us so much pleasure and encouragement to see them grown into avid readers.
Many visitors told us how much they admired our backdrop as well as our free gifts which showed five images taken from five picture books - Aunt Amelia by Rebecca Cobb, The Complete Book of First Experience by Anna Civardi, Come to School too, Blue Kangaroo! by Emma Chichester Clarke, The Mummy Shop by Abie Longstaff and I Am Abraham Lincoln by Brad Meltzer. We hope that these images will remind children throughout the year the pleasure of reading when they use the clearfolders and the homework folders. We look forward to seeing you all again next year.
