
From Left, Iman Mersal, Mohamed El-Mansi Qandil, Ezzat El-Kamhawi and Ahmed El-Shahawi
The Sheikh Zayed Book Award has announced its longlist for the Literature category for its 15th edition, including four Egyptian writers and poets among the 12 long listed titles.
The Egyptian authors are Mohammed El-Mansi Qandeel, Ezzat El-Kamhawi, Iman Mersal and Ahmed Al-Shahawi.
The other eight authors come from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Kuwait, Sudan and Iraq.
The 12 titles were chosen from among 584 entries submitted for the 2020/2021 Award, which saw a 33 percent increase in submitted entries compared to the previous edition.
Here are the longlisted novels:
An Taashaq Al-Hayat (To Love Life) by Alawiya Sobh from Lebanon, published by Dar Al Adab Publishing & Distribution in 2020.
Wajooh Al-Hosh (The Faces of the Courtyard) by Hessein Ali Hessein from Saudi Arabia, published by Le Centre Culturel Du Livre in 2020.
Ghorfat Al-Mosafree (The Passengers Hall) by Ezzat El-Kamhawi from Egypt, published by Al Dar Al Masriah Al Lubnaniah in 2020.
Al-Amirah wal Khatem (The Princess and the Ring) by Rachid El-Daif from Lebanon, published by Dar Al Saqi in 2020.
Fee Athar Enayat Al-Zayyat (In the Footsteps of Enayat Al-Zayyat) by Iman Mersal from Egypt, published by Al-Kotob Khan Library in 2019.
Safar Barlik(Seferberlik) by Maqbul Al-Alawi from Saudi Arabia, published by Dar Al-Saqi in 2019.
Hadaeqohon Al-Moaalqah (Their Hanging Gardens) by Najma Idris from Kuwait, published by Dar Al-Adab Publishing & Distribution in 2019.
Tabeeb Aryaf (Countryside Doctor) by Mohammed El-Mansi Qandeel from Egypt, published by Dar El-Shorouk Publishing & Distribution in 2020.
Tawrat Al-Mutanabbi (The Torah of Al-Mutanabbi) by Naim Abd Muhalhal from Iraq, published by Dar Ninawa Studies, Publishing & Distribution in 2019.
The longlisted poetic works include:
Ma Ana Feeh (What I'm Going Through) by Ahmed Al-Shahawi from Egypt, published by Al-Dar Al-Masriah Al Lubnaniah in 2020.
Maqam Nesyan (The Shrine of Forgetfulness) by Mohammed Ibrahim Yaghob from Saudi Arabia, published by Arab Diffusion Company in 2019.
Etha Hama Matar Al-Kalam (When Words Pour like Rain) by Rawda El-Haj from Sudan, published by Dar Al-Misk Publishing & Distribution in 2020.
The shortlist for the prize is expected to be announced in February 2021, and the winner will be announced between March and April of next year.
The Sheikh Zayed Book award is an Emirati cultural initiative launched in 2006 and awarded for the first time in 2007, and is administered by the Department of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi.
Each prize consists of a gold medal bearing the Sheikh Zayed Book Award logo, a certificate of merit, and a cash reward, comprising a total prize value of seven million UAE Dirhams ($1.9 million) annually.
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