ArabianBusiness.com - Middle East Business News
Saturday, 04 July 2009 11:03 UAE time

YOUR DIRECTORY /

| Share |

Relationship self-help book is Saudi best-seller

by This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it  on Tuesday, 02 December 2008
BOOK SALES: Self-help book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus is one of Saudi's best sellers.

An American self help book that offers advice on how to improve husband-wife relationships is among the best selling books to date in Saudi Arabia, the head of the country’s largest bookstore chain has revealed.

Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus was first published in 1992 and is based on the notion that men and women are as different as people from different planets.

“This is one of the best selling titles,” Akram Al Agil, chief executive of Jarir Bookstores said.

Story continues below
advertisement

He disagrees with critics who claim that the book is based on Western values that are incompatible with Saudi culture.

“Frankly speaking, this is not true,” he said. “You cannot tell me this is Western culture. This is an international culture.”

Saudi women have become the biggest consumers of English language books after an exodus of Western expats following the second Gulf War. Jarir now sells more English titles than Arabic ones.

Women make up 70 percent of the students at Saudi university but only around 5 percent of the Kingdom’s workforce.

Jarir has a responsibility to bring a wide range of books to the market so that people can decide for themselves what they like and don’t like, Al Agil said.

The company is translating an increasing number of US best sellers into Arabic, he added.

“Men Are from Mars…” has come under fire from Western feminists who believe the central theme of the book is simplistic and sexist.

Its author, John Gray, was the subject of controversy in 2001 after it transpired that the university that awarded him a PhD in psychology, Columbia Pacific University, had been closed down following an investigation into its academic standards.


For news updates sign up for our newsletter
| Share |


READERS' COMMENTS

Disclaimer: The views expressed here by our readers are not necessarily shared by ArabianBusiness.com or its employees.

Click here to post a comment


Add your Comment
All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *
(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments


Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.


MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM

SHARE PRICE CHECK

more » MIDDLE EAST MARKETS DATA

4190.SSE

Last Price:

131.00

0.000.00%

1 Jul 2009 12:27 GMT
(Market Closed)

 EMAIL ALERTS

  1. Jarir Bookstore

  2. Retail


CURRENCY CONVERTOR


READER COMMENTS

Reader Comments (24 hrs)

  1. 200 people arrested in Dubai counterfeit crackdown 1
    04 Jul ' 09 at 06:36
    The real culprits are in China as that whole country is a HUGE counterfeit factory. China boasts of being an Asian leader and if they...  More »
  2. AED250 water makes Dubai debut 1
    03 Jul ' 09 at 14:28
    Those who are criticizing are just jealous that they cant afford it. Guess what, there are people who can afford to shower with this...  More »
Read all user comments >

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM