Poem: The Wealth Within Pages

                The Wealth Within Pages

( Ever since we moved to the city in 1997, the International Kolkata Book Fair has been a cherished companion  in my life. In those early years, when my office was on Park Street and the fair transformed the Maidan into a literary wonderland, I spent my lunch breaks wandering through the stalls, hand-selecting books for my sons and myself.

As time passed, life’s rhythm changed; my children left for their hostels, and the demands of work and home grew, thinning that once-unbreakable cord to the fair. However, receiving a gift of books from the 2026 International Kolkata Book Fair—held at the vibrant Boimela Prangan in Salt Lake—has finally reconnected that old literary thread. Merci beaucoup, The Winner.

The following poem holds a special place in this journey. I wrote it in 2000 for my elder son when he was in the fourth grade; his teacher had asked him to write about books, a subject he knew well because his mother always brought him home a new world from the Kolkata Book Fair.)

Books are fountains of pure delight,

A golden treasure held in sight.

Constant companions, ever near,

To soothe a tired heart or dry a tear.

Through every page, I roam and trace

The vibrant heart of every race.

In travel tales and literature,

I solve the codes of Nature’s lure.

They carry me to mountain heights,

On wings of wondrous, dreamy flights.

A person’s greatest wealth, indeed—

The timeless world we choose to read.

                                              - Pankaj Mala Bhattacharya