Female booksellers are hard to find in the southern governorates, despite cities in the south of Iraq organizing festivals, forums and cultural activities. Tamara al-Attiya is a women’s rights activist from the southern city of Basra who is in the initial stages of opening a bookstore. “The bookshop is not only my business and passion — it is also part of a reformist cultural movement,” Attiya told Al-Monitor.
Attiya’s main aim is to introduce the new generation to the joys of reading, as she is concerned that the sectarian and tribal conflicts and crises are distracting from knowledge and learning.
“The new generation — which is my target audience — is attracted by modern ideas and lifestyles; yet they are stuck in a conservative culture. At the same time they are inspired by Iraq's glorious history of civilization and modern thoughts and ideas,” she said.
Many of the bookstores run by women also sell books online, with sometimes hard to find books delivered to the customer's home.
“Bookstores run by women encouraged me to read and order titles that are considered unsuitable for female readers,” Zahraa Saad, 25, who gained an interest in reading two years ago, told Al-Monitor.
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