This year's Cairo International Book Fair comes in its fifty-third session as a long-awaited holiday for lovers of reading and book lovers, after last year's session was disrupted and an exceptional session was held during the summer season at an unusual time due to the conditions of the pandemic, but that exceptional session did not witness the expected turnout from readers.
But in light of the ever-increasing rise in the prices of everything, from a loaf of bread to the costs of paper and printing, books are consequently witnessing a significant increase in their prices, which made the exhibition attendees, especially students, wonder about the best ways to get books at lower prices.
Below we will draw a clear map for you to get the best books from the book fair in various fields with a limited budget.
The main tip here is to look for books in state and government agencies that offer premium editions at a reasonable budget and great discounts.
The prices of books in these houses start from only one pound, and sometimes less.
Egyptian General Book Organization - (Hall 1 Suite B)
Whatever field of reading or knowledge you are interested in, you will find what pleases you in the pavilion of the Egyptian General Book Authority, which is the best starting point for lovers of reading on a budget.
There, you'll find a great selection of titles at budget-friendly prices, whether in literature, science, history, or even philosophy and psychology.
The publications of the Egyptian General Book Organization have witnessed a remarkable revival recently, after a decline and a limitation that continued for years (you can view through this link the semi-annual list of publications of the General Book Organization for the past year).
In addition to the new publications, you will also find in the authority’s pavilion many options from the publications of previous years, and there is also a special pavilion entitled “Treasures of the Book Authority” in the exhibition that provides a group of old copies of previous years’ publications at symbolic prices, some of which do not exceed one Egyptian pound.
Among the commission's latest publications this year are the book "The Pharaoh's Flowers" by Frank Nigel Heber, translated by Nader Anis, the novel "Baghdad and it is midnight in it" by the life of Al-Rais, the book "The Copts in Sudan" by Dr. Mustafa Kamel Abdo, and the play "Lanterns of the Night" by Abu Khneijer , and others.
As for those interested in translated literature, it is indispensable to pass by the series of publications of the Awards Series, which is one of the most important series of the General Authority, where you can find many wonderful works of international literature.
Among the titles in the award series, we nominate you: "The Elephant's Walk: Jose Saramago", "Where We Go, Papa: Jean-Louis Fournier", and "Book of Negroes: Lawrence Hill".
And of course, we do not forget to refer to the Family Library, a project of the General Book Authority, where you can find many masterpieces of Arabic and translated literature, in addition to a group of important titles in various fields at prices that usually do not exceed ten pounds.
Among the recent publications of the Family Library we recommend to you: "The Grapes of Wrath: John Steinbeck - Translated by: Saad Zahran", "Utopia: Thomas More - Translated by: Dr. Angel Peter Simon", and "The Great Gatsby: Scott Fitzgerald - Translated by: Muhammad Mustajir Mustafa "The Gold Seeker: Jean-Marie Le Clezio - Translated by: Fathi Al-Ashry", "Art and the Evolution of Human Culture: Shaker Abdel Hamid", "Naguib Mahfouz from Al-Gamalia to the Nobel: Dr. Ghaly Shukri", and finally "When I Watched the Movies" By: Mustafa Muharram.
Children, in turn, have a great share in the family library suite, where there are a number of wonderful series dedicated to them and offered at cheap prices starting from 3 pounds, among the titles we recommend to you: "Albert Einstein: Luis Kogota", and the "Material" series by Jerry Bailey, It comes in four parts: the “material of your body”, “the material of your family”, “the material of which the universe is made” and “the material of your brain”.
Along with many story books such as "How Do I Deal With My Little Money", "Don't Be Afraid to Say No", and "Beside My Dad".
Egyptian General Authority for Culture Palaces - (Hall 1 - Suite B126)
Another opportunity for visitors to the exhibition to seize many wonderful titles in various fields, as the pavilion of the Egyptian General Authority for Cultural Palaces provides them with a wide range of distinctive and translated titles at subsidized prices.
Below is a collection of the latest publications of the Culture Palaces Authority that we recommend to you this year.
From the scientific series, we recommend "Physics in its early eras: George Jamo - translation: Dr. Ibrahim Fawzy", and "Coronavirus, the virologist, and your immune system: Dr. Munir Ali Al-Ganzouri".
And from the Global Horizons series, there is "Jacopo Ortis' Last Letters: by Italian poet and novelist Ugo Foscolo - translated by Shaima Hassan."
From the series "The World of Music", we recommend "The Shawqiyat Al-Singing: Ahmed Antar Mustafa" series, and from the Fine Art Horizons series there is "The Restoration and Artistic Tasting of Antiquities: Ibrahim Al Weshahi".
Publications of the National Center for Translation
The National Translation Center's pavilion presents a diverse and rich collection of translated works in various fields.
The book fair is a great opportunity to grab the books you need, as discounts on the center’s publications during the exhibition period reach 70% on old publications, as for modern publications, discounts reach 50% for students, researchers, journalists and doctors, and 30% for the public.
Among the latest publications of the National Center for Translation that we are recommending to you this year are: "The Six Weeks Journey over the Nile: Ahmed Ihsan - Translated by Ahmed Abdullah Najm", and "Our Minds Speak.. Why is Human Communication Different and How Did Language Evolve to Make It Distinct?: Tom Scott Phillips - Translated by Ibrahim Abdel-Tawab and Youssef Mohamed", "The Biography of Abdel-Qader Al-Jazaery, Sultan of the Arabs of Algeria: Colonel Churchill - Translated by Sabri Mohamed Hassan", and finally "Shakespeare.. Inventing the Human Character: Harold Bloom - Translated by Dr. Mohamed Anani".
Dar Al-Hilal - (Hall 4, Suite 54)
Dar Al-Hilal Foundation participates in a distinguished suite that includes many original and translated titles that come at very reasonable prices, offering discounts ranging from 20-50% on all its publications.
Among the most prominent titles that we nominate for you from Dar Al-Hilal are Arabic literary works such as “Lubnan Al-Asfour: Youssef Al-Qa’id”, “Khazana Al-Kalam: Jamil Attia Ibrahim”, “I Who Saw: Mahmoud Saeed”, and “The Sharafat of Delirium: Ibrahim Nasrallah” , and "Books and People: Khairy Shalaby", and finally "Al-Ajozan: The Sweet Neighbor of the Prophet".
Subtitles include: "All Quiet in the Western Square: Erich Maia" and "The Train Arrived on Time: Heinrich Boll".
If you are a fan of comics and old children's magazines, you will also find folders for Samir and Tintin magazines at cheap prices.
Nahdet Misr - (Hall 1 - Suite B38), (Hall 2 - Suite B86)
Nahdet Misr presents a surprise to its visitors this year, as it presents for the first time at the book fair a hologram technology by the great writer Yahya Haqqi in an interactive presentation for visitors to the exhibition, and you can also get the complete works of him at a special price.
In general, Nahdet Misr is distinguished by offering an impressive range of titles with excellent elegant prints, for adults, children and young adults as well, with a discount of up to 40% on modern works, and more than that on old versions found in the discounted suite.
The Nahdet Misr publications are distinguished by the clear age classification of each book, especially in the young age groups.
We recommend to you from Nahdet Masr’s publications the novel “Al-Qata’i.. The Trilogy of Ibn Tulun - Reem Bassiouni”, “My Name is Paula.. Nadia Lutfi Tells - Ayman Al-Hakim”, and “Café Riche.. Eye on Egypt - Maysoon Saqr”.
house of knowledge
Dar Al Maaref is also one of the most important and oldest Egyptian houses, where you can find the books of Dr. Muhammad Hussein Heikal, the Dean of Arabic Literature, Dr. Taha Hussein, and other valuable works offered by the house with discounts of up to 50% and prices starting from only three pounds.
We recommend to you: “Great people in their childhood: Muhammad Al-Mansi Qandil”, “The Last Days in Their Lives: Hanafi Al-Mahlawi”, “Al-Ayyam: Taha Hussein”, “With Others: Anis Mansour”, and “Encyclopedia of Popular Proverbs: Ibrahim Ahmed” Shaalan".
As for young people and children, you can give your children a look at your childhood books, and you will find the numbers of the "Five Adventurers" series and the series of stories of the Green Library.
The good news for those who cannot go to the exhibition this year is that the discounts of Dar Al Maaref are available in all branches of the house throughout the exhibition period.
National Library and Archives
For researchers of heritage books, mothers of books, and researchers in history and sociology, the National Library and Documentation House offers a distinguished group of titles, and it was unique in the previous session of the book fair by presenting "One Thousand and One Nights" in 12 luxurious volumes.
The house also offers a wide range of titles at discounted prices ranging from 5-20 pounds.
Among her most important publications are: “Nahayat Al-Aqdar fi Ilm Al-Kalam - by Al-Shahrastani”, “Sharh Al-Ta’iyah Al-Kubra by Ibn Al-Farid: by Al-Tilmisani”, and “Madarij Al-Salikeen - by Ibn Al-Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah”.
Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences
For those interested in science, we advise them to head to the KFAS pavilion, where they will find many publications at subsidized prices, and with luxurious editions, in addition to very special children's books for different age groups.
We recommend to you from the publications of the Kuwait Foundation: "The Fabric of the Universe: Brian Green", "The Oxygen Molecule that Made the World: Nick Lane", and "The Machines of Life: David S. Goodsell", in addition to the issues of a number of important scientific journals such as: Madar", "The Science" magazine, and "How Things Work" magazine.
For children, the Kuwait Foundation is distinguished by the presence of a group of wonderful books in the field of science for children of all ages, at special prices. We recommend to you among them “The Book of Knowledge Encyclopedia..a guide to everything you have always wanted to know: Miles Kelly” and “The Book of Life..The Guide to Everything that lives on our planet - by the same author".
Academy of Arts Suite
It includes a distinguished group of publications in various fields of art for specialists and researchers, with prices starting from 5 pounds or less, and not often exceeding 20 pounds.
National Center for Child Culture
For those looking for children’s books at subsidized prices, the National Center for Child Culture participates in a wide range of publications for children, including 18 plays from the “Children’s Theatre” series. and "Shehab El-Din and Princess Nasreen - Samir Fawzy".
Azbakeya wall
For the best prices, of course, we can not go beyond the Azbakeya Wall Pavilion, the oldest used book market in Egypt, where you will find thousands of wonderful titles at low prices, especially foreign books that are available at prices that sometimes reach 10% of their original price.
We advise you in Azbakeya wall to walk around and search for the best price for the book, and negotiate with the seller to reduce the price.
Your Culture Initiative.. Your Book
The Ministry of Culture also renewed the "Your Culture is Your Book" initiative, which includes hundreds of titles from publishing houses and sectors of the ministry, provided that the price of a book does not exceed 20 pounds, an initiative that was launched in the last session of the Cairo International Book Fair.
The initiative includes hundreds of titles from publishing houses and sectors of the ministry, and many private publishing houses participate in it.
Finally, we advise you to follow the reading and book groups on social media, as some of them offer special discount vouchers to their members during the fair.
Also, if you are a student, researcher, or member of a medical union, be sure to bring your own card, as some parties offer special discounts for those belonging to these bodies.
Also, don't forget to check out the gallery's map to see where you'd like to head, and check out our previous book recommendations.
Our nominations for children's books
Our nominations for books for teens and young adults
Nominations of Arab female writers and writers for the field readers for the year 2022