Smakebit på Søndag; The Book Collectors: A Band of Syrian Rebels and the Stories That Carried Them Through a War av Delphine Minoui

Det er på tide med en ny Smakebit på Søndag, som Betraktninger og Flukten fra virkeligheten har ansvaret for.

Boka jeg vil ta for meg i dag er den faglitterære The Book Collectors: A Band of Syrian Rebels and the Stories That Carried Them Through a War av Delphine Minoui. Boka omhandler en gruppe mennesker som samler sammen en mengde bøker fra forlatte hus i Daraya og lager et undergrunnsbibliotek midt under den syriske krigen. Ikke bare forteller boka om selve biblioteket og hvilken betydning bøker kan ha, men en får også et inntrykk av menneskene og den syriske krigen. Boka kan i hvert fall definitivt anbefales.

Det er to smakebiter jeg vil dele og her er den første.

He spends hours explaining this project to save their cultural heritage, born from the ashes of a town that won’t yield. He tells me about the incessant bombing. The empty stomachs. The soups made of leaves to stave off starvation. The voracious reading to nourish the mind. The library is their hidden fortress against the bombs. Books are their weapons of mass instruction.

Og her er den andre.

He’s been leading a double life ever since, between war and literature. A Kalashnikov in one hand, a text always in reach of the other. He even created a mini-library on the front line: a dozen works perfectly organized and protected behind the sandbags. The concept inspired other combatants. When the bombs quiet down, they exchange books and share reading recommendations.

“War is destructive. It transforms men, kills emotions and fears. When you’re at war, you see the world differently. Reading is a diversion, it keeps us alive. Reading reminds us that we’re human.”