Kuwait Heritage Library tells story of country’s rich history

Kuwait Heritage Library tells story of country’s rich history

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: Many people are still interested in history and heritage, including old books. At the quaint Youm Al-Bahaar village on the seaside, visitors can find the Kuwait Heritage Library that was launched in 2008. The books here are for both reading and sale.

The owner of the library, Saleh Al-Misbah, is also the owner of the biggest personal library in Kuwait, with over 120,000 books. Misbah is a researcher in Kuwait history and collector of rare publications including books, magazines, newspapers and videocassettes. He is an author and co-author of several books, a consultant at Al-Fanar Kuwait Center for Documenting Humanitarian Work, and was a board member of different societies and associations and editor-in-chief of Al-Bayan magazine.

“I have over 50,000 books at home. I have also rented a storage place, where I have over 60,000 books. I also have 120 cartons of magazines and videocassettes. This is my passion,” he told Kuwait Times. “This hobby started in 1975 when I was a student in secondary school, after I visited the Islamic Books Exhibition. In the same year, the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters held the Arabic Book Fair, which has been held annually since that year. After