Turkish woman awarded for borrowing most books from library

Reyhan Pirdal, a health officer residing in the northeastern province of Giresun, has been awarded the reader that benefits from libraries the most nationwide. Reading can be hard work even for bookworms but Pirdal has read more than 400 books in three years. "Until 2013, I preferred to buy books myself and was not a library addict. After I became a member of the local library, I began to spend more time in libraries," Pirdal said.

She also won the award in 2013. Pirdal reads at least two books a week. "I can spend hours in a library. If I have more time, I just keep on reading. I cannot leave a book without finishing it," she continued, adding that people should adopt reading as a lifestyle.

According to the Turkish Publishers Association (TPA), 670 million books were published in Turkey last year. However, certain studies show Turkish people do not have a regular reading habit. A study by Libronet, an information technology service has shown that almost 70 percent of study participants in 14 different cities read books. However, only one-fifth of them are regular book readers while one-third of the group reads books occasionally and another one-fifth rarely reads.