Sheikh Zayed Book Award announces longlist for literature

Works by writers from the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia are nominated for the prestigious accolade

15 works have been named to the longlist of the 2021 Sheikh Zayed Book Award in the literature category. Photo: Sheikh Zayed Book Award

The Sheikh Zayed Book Award has revealed the longlist for its literature category. From a total of 852 submissions, 15 titles were selected, of which 13 are novels and two are poetry.

The 2021 longlist includes works by writers from nine countries: the UAE, Iraq, Egypt, Oman, Morocco, Mauritania, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Launched in 2007 and organised by the Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi, the annual Sheikh Zayed Book Award honours the achievements of Arab writers, international and regional intellectuals, translators and publishers, whose work is viewed as having "enriched Arab, cultural, literary and social life".

With a Dh7 million-prize purse, it is also one of the richest literary awards in the world. The shortlist will be unveiled in March with the winners announced in April.

Here's a list of the longlisted works:

• Yawmyyat Rose’ (Rose’s Diaries) by Reem Alkamali (UAE)
• ‘Al Rehla Al Naqisah’ (The Missing Trip) by Fatima Al Mohsen (UK/Iraq)
• ‘Matahat Al A’abed’ (The Labyrinth of The Worshiper) by Mohamed Youssef Elgharbawi (Egypt)
• ‘Safar Wahshi’ (Wild Travel) by Mohamed Hiyawi (Iraq/Netherlands)
• ‘Sir Al Moriksi’ (Morexian Secret) by Mohammed Alajmi (Oman)
• ‘Ghorbat Al Manazil’ (Strangers at Home) by Ezzat Elkamhawy (Egypt)
• ‘Wa Tahmelany Hayraty Wa Dh’anony. Seerat Altakween’ (Composition Biography: Thoughts and Confusion Carry Me) by Said Bengrad (Morocco)
• ‘Al Shan’qeeti’ (Al-Shanqeeti) by Sayid Weld Bah (Mauritania)
• ‘Rabe’e Al Ghabah’ (Forest Spring) by Jamal Matar (UAE)
• ‘Habs Qarah’ (Confining a Continent) by Said Bensaid Alaoui (Morocco)
• ‘Mokhatat Petersburg’ (Petersburg Manuscript) by Jan Dost (Syria/Germany)
• ‘Khatf Al Habib’ (The Lover’s Kidnapping) by Taleb Al Refai (Kuwait)
• ‘Maq’ha Reesh, Ain Ala Massr’ (Eyes on Egypt: Alreesh Cafe) by Maisoon Saqer (UAE)

The two poetic works:

• ‘La Harb fe Terwadah – Kalemat Homeras Al Akheera’ (No War in Troy - Homer's Last Words) by Nouri Al Jarah
• ‘Tadharees Al Hathyan’ (Delirium Map) by Jassim Alsuhayyih