Ayuha al-dub al-bunny, ayuha al-dub al-bunny, madha taraa?
Parents might know it better as: Brown bear, brown bear what do you see?
The famous children’s book is just as popular in Arabic as in English, and at Botany Library you can check out both.
When senior community engagement librarian Yessar Barakat saw a growing population of Arabic-speaking people in her neighbourhood, she set about doing something about it.
With the help of Auckland Central Library, there was soon a small selection of books in Arabic available on Botany’s shelves.
All Yessar had to do then was get Arabic-speakers to come in and borrow them.
"It was mostly people from Iraq arriving but there were Jordanians, people from Somalia and Sudan, Egyptians, and some from Lebanon too," she says.
The word went out, and before long there were not only books to borrow, but an adult book club meeting twice a month, and story time in Arabic for children.
"Once a month all the adults get together and talk about our own reading, and at another time we talk about a book we’ve all read," Yessar says.
It’s mostly women joining the reading club, but the men can be relied on to take over the café outside the library when the women meet, drinking coffee and arguing about the news, Barakat says.
"It’s the Arab way, politics, politics, politics. The women call it the chat chat cafe."
Sunday mornings are reserved for the children, and twice a month they meet for fun activities, stories and to use their language.
"It’s just a bit of fun, with something interesting to do. The main thing is to get them using the language. We want them to be conversational, because young people tend to learn English more easily, having Arabic means generational barriers can be broken down.
"They can talk to their parents, grandparents and older community members."
Yessar knows what it is to come to a new country herself, arriving from Iraq in 1996 during the height of sanctions after the invasion of Kuwait, armed with little more information than that her new home looked an awful lot warmer than Canada, the family’s other option.
"It’s a terrible thing to admit isn’t it? We went to Jordan, New Zealand and Canada were prepared to take us, but I took one look at the snow and my mind was made up."
The petroleum engineer could see little opportunity for her family, but the oil industry’s loss was Botany’s gain, though Yessar is modest about her role in helping Arabic-speakers find a place in their new community.
"So many people have stepped up to help. The Central Library team has been amazing, sourcing books for us, and Auckland Council funding has been used without question, while the team here at Botany could not be more accommodating and accepting," she says.
The circulation numbers show how well the service is used. "There’s always someone coming and asking for us to get hold of something, and there are lots of people who are reliant on the library for material, I mean, it’s not like you can just pop down to Whitcoulls."
Botany also has a large collection for the Chinese community, while nearby Pakuranga has one for Hindi readers. But Arabic is unique to Botany, Yessar says.
While Yessar might be slow to take credit for her work, Howick Local Board member Mike Turinsky says she’s a bit of a star.
"I’m an immigrant myself, having arrived from Alaska, so language wasn’t a barrier - but here’s someone who has taken her own experience and used it to do something good for a community, just because she could. That’s a bit special."
Mike works with young students in Howick schools. "I see kids chatting away to each other in all sorts of languages, including Arabic, and it just reminds me how wonderfully accommodating New Zealand has been to offer us all a home. I think it’s great."
Ayuha al-dub al-bunny, ayuha al-dub al-bunny, madha taraa?
Araa bitta safra' tanzur 'iilaya – I see a yellow duck looking at me.
