CCTV9英语新闻：Couple seek to reviving Iran's literary heritage

An Iranian couple's habit of reading to each other when stuck in traffic has turned into a mission to revive reading among the country's population. Meanwhile, the 29th International Tehran Book Fair has launched in the capital with the slogan "Tomorrow is too late to read".

A national decline in reading is a major topic among booksellers gathering in Tehran. But one enterprising couple are doing what they can to reverse the trend.

Sarvenaz, a writer, poet and university teacher, and her husband have created a mobile bookstore, called "rolling bookstore". It aims to reclaim time given over to mobile-phone apps and other electronic material.

"It was a very interesting experience for me. I could not believe there is a couple who spend their time encouraging people to read."

What sets this project apart from other mobile bookstores around the world is that Sarvenaz and Mehdi do not park and wait for customers to come to them.

Book-loving couple launch mobile bookstore.

They offer free rides to random hitchhikers and offer them the option of reading. The couple claim to have given rides to more than 150,000 people since starting the project in 2009. And the quantity of books proves a great conversation starter for curious passengers.

"When we get stuck in traffic, the one that does not drive reads for the other to make it more tolerable. On a rainy day, we were reading for each other, and the car was full of books, when we saw two passengers standing in the rain. We gave them a lift, and I continued reading aloud, because I am a teacher with high self-confidence!"

"My reading seemed to relax and uplift them because they did not want to leave the car at their destination and wanted to listen to the end of the story. It occurred to us at that point how easy it would be to delight and motivate our fellow citizens through things we love ourselves, such as books, music, and socialising," said Sarvrnaz Heraner, onwer of Mobile Bookstore.

"Basically, in big cities and capitals, people usually don't feel so good, and they're not in a great mood. Putting people in a good mood by placing them in a cultural atmosphere or a small safe space and changing their bad feelings for better has a great positive effect. Sometimes, it makes me feel great for a whole week when I give books to passengers," said Mehdi Yazdani, the onwer.

The 29th International Tehran Book Fair started Tuesday. On average, it hosts 2,500 domestic publishers, and 600 foreign publishers, and receives millions of visitors.

The event runs until the 14th of May.