On the doorstep of coronation… stories unfolding between the covers of a book
Dhahran – 25 November 2025 | BETH

Out of more than 192,000 participants in the tenth edition of the “Read” competition, organized by the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) — an Aramco initiative — six finalists from five Arab countries reach the threshold of the dream, each carrying a story that feels like a page from a long book.

Along this path toward the final stage, four luminous narratives emerge… each walking in a different direction, yet all meeting at one truth:

Reading changes a human life with a quiet, unforgettable force.

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1) From the desire to understand… to knowledge and critique

Abdulilah Al-Bahrani – Saudi Arabia

Abdulilah’s relationship with books began in his mother’s library — a small sanctuary he escaped to whenever the world shrank and questions grew.

In the “Read” competition, he discovered that knowledge is not an individual act, but a shared space between countless minds.
Every personal library he encountered expanded his taste… every conversation opened a new window.

Today, he does not see the competition as a passing station, but as the beginning of a journey he wants to be part of — after learning that expressing an idea honestly is the shortest path to real impact.

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2) When fear becomes a first step

Younes Al-Bekkali – Morocco

Younes entered the world of reading in a home filled with books, but his path to “Read” revealed something he had not known before:
that a book can transform shyness into strength… and anxiety into steadiness.

At each stage he confronted himself, discovering that reading is not only what we consume from pages — but what it quietly reshapes inside us.
For him, the competition was not just a challenge, but a gentle turning point that reorganized the inner world and restored confidence.

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3) Searching for space big enough for all the questions

Sarah Ben Ammar – Morocco

She cannot recall when she first started reading… but she remembers well the moment life felt too narrow for her questions.
She needed space — and she found it only in books.

In “Read”, she learned that reading is not an escape from the world, but a different way of approaching it.
Every book opened a window, and every stage of the competition nudged her toward deeper understanding — of herself, and of life.

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4) Curiosity that led to certainty

Amin Shaaban – Tunisia

His story began with curiosity… and ended with complete transformation.
He never expected to find himself among 200,000 participants, yet with each acceptance message, each interview, each advancement through the stages, a new road seemed to open before him.

When he reached the top fifty… then the final six, he realized it was not merely a race toward a podium, but a journey toward himself.
Today, as he prepares for the next chapter, he knows one truth:
reading took his hand once — and it will do so again, every time.

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When passion gathers in one place

Every edition of “Read” reveals new minds carrying more than a simple love for reading.
These four stories are not only personal journeys, but reflections of a larger truth:

Reading is not a cultural habit… but a quiet power capable of opening invisible doors, reshaping futures, and inspiring lives — one book at a time.