A session of the Kalima Reading Club held at Zayed National Museum in Abu Dhabi has set a Guinness World Record for the largest multi-nationality book club session, bringing together readers from nearly 70 nationalities.
Kalima Reading Club has run since 2018, hosting sessions in schools, universities and public events across the UAE. The book discussed at this record-setting gathering was "Bedouin and Abbasid Cultural Identities: The Arabic Majnun Layla Story" by Ruqayya Yasmine Khan, which traces the evolution of the classic Arabic love story from the Bedouin era through the seventh-century Abbasid period.
The session formed part of the cultural programme at the 35th Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The fair's executive director said turnout for cultural programming this year far exceeded expectations, with attendance doubling initial projections.
The record cements Abu Dhabi's standing as a host for major international cultural events and reflects the emirate's ongoing push to promote reading and cross-cultural exchange among the many nationalities living in and visiting the UAE.