THE country today begins Library Week celebrations.
And the Suva City Library will come to life as students, teachers and parents gather to celebrate, create and strengthen reading and learning among children in Fiji.
Activities like face painting, sketching and entertainment will also complement the day at Nausori. The event will begin with a march from Ratu Cakobau House to Syria Park.
Suva City Carnegie Library chief librarian Maureen Shariff said the week was significant because it stressed the objectives of library services throughout Fiji and that the initiative portrayed the importance of information that books had.
Mrs Shariff said children needed to learn how to read at an early age as it would help them later in life.
She said a lot of activities would be staged at Suva City Carnegie Library from today and would continue until next week Friday.
"National library week is celebrated to promote library, reading and literacy," she said.
"As a municipal public library, the Suva City Carnegie Library provides information to members of the public free of charge," she said.
"A book is valuable for the mental growth of your child. Good and inspiring books not only enhance the cognitive abilities of a child but also spurs the child's emotional, social, moral and spiritual growth," she added.
She said access to books and libraries played a healthy role in deciding the child's future.