+

ADA Bookstore Newsletter Issue 1, May 2012

We are thrilled to present our brand-new newsletter to you and tell you all about the

exciting things we have done since our inception. As you may already know, ADA Book

Center was established on April 22, 2011, by the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. We took

it upon ourselves to bring a new book reading culture to the country and to enrich the book

readers’ choices. In that regard, we house an astonishing list of 20, 000 books, magazines,

periodicals in three languages, varying from bestsellers, fiction, non-fiction, biography,

business, computing, health, science, history among many. The visitors can come in

anytime, grab their favorite book from the shelves, and enjoy reading it over hot cup of tea

at the Book Café. Beside the wide variety of books, we have hosted various events ranging

from book presentations, meetings with writers, kids’ events, to international festivals,

students’ days, and so on! In this issue, you will learn about all these in detail and much

more. So, sit back and let us take you on a journey to ADA Book Center.

- Rovshana Samadova, ADA Book Center Manager

Welcome to the ADA Book Center!

II Annual International Festival @ ADA Book Center

“Among such an abundance of books and comfort, I feel as though I am in one of the bookstores in Washington, D.C.”

- Matthew Bryza, Former

Ambassador of the US to Azerbaijan

Table of Contents

Book signing series connect readers with their favorite writers & authors

Page 2

Book Center fans enjoy ADA’s signature International Festival

Page 3

Lecture series and book discussions open up the floor for hot debates

Page 4

Find out more about ADA Book Center events here

Page 5

Indonesian Cuisine Day attracts food lovers to ADA Café

Page 6

page 3

+ Second Annual International Festival ADA Book Center hosted

another successful international festival.

page 3

2

Issue 1, May 2012

ADA Book Center periodically organizes events and meetings with artists, poets, writers in order to promote the rich and age-old Azerbaijani culture and literature. On June 10, 2011, for the first time, ADA Book Center opened its doors to the fans of the famous

Azerbaijani writer and a member of the Writers’ Union, Chingiz Abdullayev. On that day, numerous “Drongo followers” were given a unique chance to chat with their favorite writer and engage in lively discussions about his books.

Abdullayev said that, he was impressed by the special atmosphere at the Book Center and a variety of books it offered. At the end of the event, the writer signed his books for his readers and answered their unending questions.

On November 10, 2011, ADA Book Center hosted the book presentation of a well-known Azerbaijani writer, author of 30 books, Natig Rasulzade. The writer made a presentation of four of his new books, among which were, “Among Ghosts”, “House”, “Mind Reader”, and “Khunkharlar”.

Fans of the author had a great chance to ask questions and have their books signed by the writer himself. Rasuzade is a famous playwright and 15 films have been made based on his works.

Book signing event with Chingiz Abdullayev

“ADA Book Store reminds me of the quality book centers of the US and European cities I have visited. ” Chingiz Abdullayev said.

+

Natig Rasulzade signs four of his books for his fans

3

Issue 1, May 2012

Annual International Festival Promoting cultural diplomacy… One of ADA Book Center’s signature events is the annual international festival. The first one was held last year, on the same day that the Book Center opened, April 22, 2011 and was a great success. This year’s festival took place on April 27th. The purpose in organizing the festival is to bring together the representatives of different nations, celebrate the cross-cultural exposure and promote cultural dialogue among international students in Azerbaijan. Twenty-two embassies took part at the festival this year by exhibiting their countries, cultural heritage and cuisine. Among the countries represented were Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Libya, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Poland, Romania, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, The United States of America and Uzbekistan. The Festival provided a great chance for foreign students of different universities in Baku, including ADA, to build connections with each other and to get to know more about diplomatic missions and their activities in Azerbaijan. They also treated themselves to delectable cuisines and enjoyed spectacular dance and music performances.

Another feature of the Festival was that, the Azerbaijani people’s artist, worldly known mugham performer Alim Gasimov and his daughter Fargana Gasimova made an outstanding performance of mugham music.

The number of visitors reached almost 300. The Festival was enriched with the national dance performances of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Palestine, Belorussia, India and the Fiji Islands.

“We should not only talk about politics or about economy. Nowadays, culture also plays an important role in policy. We know that culture is known as soft diplomacy. That’s why, it’s good to have an opportunity to connect with different people in events like this”.

– Mr. Prayona Atiyantono, Ambassador of Indonesia

+

“We are very proud to be here and represent Latvia. To be able to interact with other people and to get to know their traditions and cultures is wonderful. This event should be held every year”.

- Irisa Danelsone, Embassy of Latvia

4

Issue 1, May 2012

Zeyno Baran giving a lecture at ADA Book Center

ADA Book Center held a book discussion for current moms and future parents on November 29, 2011. “Kindergarten is too late” is a legendary book by Masaru Ibuka, the co-founder of the Sony Corporation. The book was first published in English in 1977, and was translated into Russian twenty years ago.

The book changes the perception of parents about the kids’ early learning process and gives a better understanding of how to develop children’s abilities at an early age without harming their health.

On December 6, 2011, Ms. Zeyno Baran, Director of Center for European Policy at Hudson Institute, gave a lecture at ADA Book Center on the topic of “Islam, Islamism and the West”. One of the world’s leading experts on Islamist movements, Eurasian-U.S. policies and energy security, Ms. Baran made a presentation of her newly released book “Citizen Islam”, which generated an interesting discussion with the guests.

Lecture series…

Book discussion: Kindergarten is too late!

The presentation of the book went in a discussion format, starting with the welcoming speech of the Japanese Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Mr. Shusuke Watanabe, and continued with a presentation by children’s psychiatrist, Ms. Narmin Hajiyeva on “raising kids aged 3 and after”.

Meet the Writers… On June 19, 2011, ADA Book Center organized a meeting with famous Azeri writers and welcomed their fans. The guests were the Secretary on Youth Issues of the Writers’ Union and the chief editor of the “525” newspaper, Rashad Majid, the chief editor of the “Ulduz” magazine, Elchin Guseynbayli and the chief editor of the “Penjere” magazine, Gunel Anargizi. Young writers talked about their latest books and publications, and shared their future plans with their readers.

5

Issue 1, May 2012

Kids Celebrate Winter Holiday

On December 20, 2011 the ADA Book Center opened its floors to its little friends to celebrate the winter holiday. Various games and trivia quizzes about kids’ favorite fairy tale heroes were played during the event. The most important part of the night was the puppet theater play “Friendly Heart”. The aim of the play was to reinforce the ideas of friendship, right and wrong, as well as to help one’s friends when they are in need.

International Students’ Day

ADA Book Center, with the Azerbaijani Students’ Youth Organizations' Union celebrated the International Students’ Day on November 18, 2011. Cultural centers of the Azerbaijani, Bulgarian, Greek, German, French, Italian, Norwegian and Japanese universities attended the event and enjoyed various cultural festivities.

Exhibiting at the Local & International Book Fairs

In May 2011, ADA Book Center took part at an open air Book Fair, and in September 2011, an International Book Fair, both of which were organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Our Book Center enjoyed exhibiting books in 3 languages it offers to book lovers.

Book Clubbers Meet at Their Favorite Place – ADA Book Cafe

ADA Book Cafe has become a much-loved place for the AAA Book Club members. The club meets at ADA book café to hold their monthly book club meetings. They hold discussions around various books over a cup of their favorite drink and pastry.

Cutting edge IT Corner Launched at ADA Book Center

On January 27, 2012, ADA Book Center launched an IT Corner, where latest technological releases are showcased and sold. As information technologies and the Internet are an integral part of modern education, book center’s IT corner provides wide-ranging opportunities based on the priorities of its customers.

Issue I, May 2012

Considered one of the healthiest eaters in the world, Indonesian people rely on a wide range of fresh, nutrient-rich ingredients including vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, legumes and fish.

Indonesian Cuisine Day

On March 16, 2012, the first in the cooking class series was the Indonesian cuisine day hosted at the ADA Book Café. The Indonesian Ambassador Raden Prayono Atiyanto and his colleagues from the Embassy took the guests on a delicious cultural journey and shared the cooking secrets of the Indonesian people. The guests enjoyed learning how to cook such traditional Indonesian dishes as fried rice, fried noodles and chicken sauté. After the cooking demonstration, guests were served delectable Indonesian dishes and pastry.

New arrivals on our shelves…

+

Contact us: ADA Book Center 88 Shamil Azizbayov St. Baku, Azerbaijan T: 437 05 25 E: info@adabook.az W: adabook.az

Store hours: Mon-Sat 10am-8pm Sun – closed Follow us: