I came across an interesting article today highlighting Shah Muhammad Rais, known as the “biggest book-seller in Afghanistan.” Over the last three decades, the Afghan people have experienced much despair caused by war. So how do you repair a county that has gone through utter destruction? Rais’ answer is through books!

For Rais, selling books is not his only goal. For the last several years, Rais has put his time and effort into getting his country interested in reading again, using books to purify Kabul, a city that had been caught in the muck of war and corruption.

Decades of war have really damaged the education system and literacy rates in Afghanistan. Rais has gone on a mission to distribute as many books as possible to help provide knowledge of culture, history and understanding of the word, while restoring the country’s reputation as the birth place of many important Asian scholars, scientist and poets.

I think Rais’ mission is a great idea. Books open doors, provide prospective, bring knowledge and even gives us the power to escape from everyday life. A physical book is no more than a few bound pages with splattered ink, but symbolically, books are powerful tools that can help a nation rise back to the top.

In addition, books help individuals in low-income communities rise above difficult circumstances. In reading this article, I was reminded that, like Rais, First Book is also on a mission - to provide every child with a new book. If more organizations like First Book and individuals like Rais see the importance of reading I have no doubt that great and positive change will begin to bloom across the globe.