Every Monday from 10 – 4 pm Operation Smile UAE has a book sale in their Smile Cafe. For those that don’t know, Operation Smile UAE is a charity organisation that provides free surgery to repair cleft lip, cleft palates and other facial deformities to underprivileged children around the world. Part of the fundraising for these trips is done through the Smile Cafe.
Smile Cafe is operated by volunteers. Some will make baked goods to sell and others will give their time to manage the book sale. Located in a villa behind Khalifa University, this charity book shop spans over two large rooms. Books are laid out on tables, in rows, making maximum use of table space. The donated books are used but all in very good condition. You will even find some books that have never been used before (unwanted gifts perhaps). Everything is neatly organized by subject in alphabetical order making it easy to find a specific book. What a variety of books to choose from! Fiction, non fiction, cooking, children, teen, educational, instructional, computer, self help – there is every subject you could possibly think of. You’ll even find a small selection of books in other languages – Arabic, Hindu, French, etc.
Tables are set up so that you can sit and read, have a coffee, a cake and relax. However, this will be hard to do with the wide selection available. Time passes quickly as you browse through the plethora of books. If you have small children, then you must visit to update your home bookshelves. Donations are always coming in so the selection is constantly changing. Books are priced between 1- 20 AED with most of the selection at 3 – 5 AED. You will not find a better bargain than that anywhere in Abu Dhabi. It is worth your time to make the trip to Smile Cafe. You’ll definitely leave smiling and all monies raised goes toward making a child smile.
Where: Smile Cafe is located behind Khalifa University (construction site) on the corner of 19th and 4th street.
When: Every Monday 10am – 4pm
Phone: 02 658 4790
Email: info@operationsmileuae.ae
If you have books you would like to donate or would like to get involved as a volunteer, please be sure to visit and like the Operation Smile UAE Facebook page (click here).
