World’s Largest Bookstore, Tehran’s Book Garden, Opens in Iran

on July 8, 2017 | 8:40:01

Newsweek magazine has reported on the opening of the world’s largest bookstore, ‘Tehran’s Book Garden’:

Officials unveiled the Book Garden, a giant academic complex on Wednesday. At roughly 65,000 square meters (about 700,000 square feet), the center has several movie theaters, science halls, classrooms, a restaurant, a prayer room and whole a lot of literature. On its roof is a green park area for reading.

All in all, the center aims to encourage Iranian children to be “active and creative through modern methods and equipment,” as the Mehr News Agency reported Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said earlier this week. “The opening of the Book Garden is a big cultural event in the country, so that our children can make better use of this cultural and academic opportunity,” Tehran Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf added.

It was a long time coming. The idea for the Book Garden was first pitched in 2004 as a way to cater to fans of the city’s annual International Book Fair year-round. Construction on the center wrapped up last spring, and organizers spent the past few months stocking it with books. More than 400,000 titles are available for kids alone. One part of the center even has shorter shelves so youth can reach books better.

According to the Guinness World Records team, the biggest individual bookstore since 1999 has been the Barnes & Noble along Fifth Avenue in New York City. It’s about 154,000 square feet and includes more than 12 miles of shelves.

Photo credit: iranmilitaryvlog

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