
The Three shortlisted novels in the Sheikh Zayed Book Award for Literature
The Sheikh Zayed Book Award has announced the shortlists for the ‘Literature’, ‘Young Author’, and ‘Children’s Literature’ categories of its 15th edition.
These nine shortlisted titles hail from Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia, Palestine, and Lebanon, with female writers claiming the largest share, with seven titles out of the nine.
The shortlist for each of these categories feature three titles; these were selected from 14 entries of the Young Author long list, 13 from the Children’s Literature long list, and 12 from the Literature long list.
On the Literature shortlist is ‘Aan Ta’ashaq Al Hayat’ (To Love Life) by Lebanese author Alawiya Sobh, published by Dar Al-Adab Publishing & Distribution in 2020; ‘Ghorfat Al-Mosafreen’ (The Passengers’ Hall) by Egyptian novelist Ezzat El-Kamhawi, published by Al-Dar Al Masriah Al-Lubnaniah in 2020; and ‘Fee Athar Enayat Al-Zayyat’ (In the Footsteps of Enayat Al-Zayyat) by Egyptian writer Iman Mersal, published in 2019 by Al-Kotob Khan Library.
The Children’s Literature shortlist features ‘Hadyqat Al-Zomorrod’ (The Emerald Garden) by Moroccan author Raja Malah, published by Dar Al-Moualef Publishing and Distribution/ Maalem Printing in 2019; ‘Rehlat Fannan’ (An Artist's Journey) by Tunisian author Mizouni Bannani, published by Dar Al-Mua'nasa Publishing in 2020; and “Al-Ghool wa Nabtat Al-Olayq (The Beast and the Blackberry) by Emirati author Naseeba Alozaibi, published by Dar Ashjar Publishing and Distribution in 2019.
The Young Author shortlist includes two novels and one study. The novels are ‘Laylat Yalda’ (Yalda’s Night) by Egyptian novelist Ghada Al-Absi, published by Dar Al Tanweer in 2018; and ‘Ma Tarkto Khalfy’ (What I left Behind) by Palestinian novelist Shatha Mustafa, published by Nofal/Hachette Antoine in 2020.
The study is ‘Eshkalyat Al-Thaat Al-Saredah Fee Al-Rwayah Al-Nesaayah Al-Saudiah’ (The Problems of the Narrated Self in the Saudi Feminist Novel) by Asma Muqbil Awad Al-Ahmadi, published by Arab Scientific Publishers Inc. in 2020.
These three categories were particularly popular this year, all receiving a significant increase in the number of entries year-on-year. The Young Author category received 646 submissions, an increase of approximately 30 percent over the previous edition, while the Literature category saw an increase of 33 percent in the number of nominations, bringing this year’s number to 584. The Children’s Literature category received 244 entries, an increase of approximately 19% compared to the previous edition.
The 15th edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award is the largest in its history in terms of the number of nominations, with the award receiving a total of 2,349 entries across its nine categories this year — a 23 percent increase compared to the previous edition.
The winners will be honoured during a virtual ceremony in May, where the recipient of the ‘Cultural Personality of the Year’ accolade will be awarded a gold medal and a certificate of merit, as well as a monetary prize of AED 1 million.
Winners of other categories will receive a gold medal, a certificate of merit and a prize of AED 750,000 each.
The Award will announce the shortlists for the remaining categories over the next few weeks.
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