Emirati Book Fair in Sharjah returns for second year

The four-day event will also host panel discussions and poetry evenings led by renowned UAE authors and intellectuals

The Sharjah Book Authority headquarters in Al Zahia, Sharjah. Ruel Pableo for The National

The second Emirati Book Fair will run from Thursday to Sunday this week.

Organised by the Sharjah Book Authority in partnership with the Emirates Writers Union, the event will be taking place at the authority’s headquarters in Al Zahia, Sharjah. Emirati publishing houses are set to present the newest titles by local authors, from academic books, novels and historical titles to children’s literature.

The book fair will also host panel discussions and poetry evenings led by renowned Emirati authors and intellectuals.

The four-day event will bring together literary figures including Hamad Ben Saray from United Arab Emirates University's department of history and archaeology, poets Ali Al Abdan, Sheikha Al Mutairi, Ahmad Al Assam and Amal Al Sahlawi, as well as novelists Salha Obaid and Eman Al Yousuf, among others.

Discussions and debates will span several cultural topics including Emirati writers’ presence on the global scene, musical anthropology in Sharjah, and the creative journey of Emirati poet Ahmad Rashid Thani.

Khoula Al Mujaini, director of exhibitions and festivals at Sharjah Book Authority, said that the book fair highlights the authority’s vision to strengthen the local book industry movement and advance it by deliberating with creatives and renowned Emirati authors and intellectuals.

"The EBF will also showcase the Emirati book market and provide the public with an opportunity to expand their knowledge at the cultural event held during Ramadan,” she said.

Entities participating in the local event include the Sharjah Institute for Heritage, Poetry Academy, Al Qasimi Publications, Kalimat Group, Al Hudhud Publishing and Distribution, and other cultural institutions, initiatives and local publishers.

Besides its local initiatives, the book authority is working to ameliorate the publishing industry in the Middle East and North Africa, after teaming up with Lightning Source, one of the world's biggest print-on-demand companies.

Lightning Source Sharjah opened in the emirate's free zone, Sharjah Publishing City, in November, making it one of the first major print-on-demand and distribution facilities in the Middle East.

“The distribution model in the region is not as advanced or capable as we enjoy it in North America or Europe. So what we built there in Sharjah Publishing City is a print-on-demand model,” said David Taylor, senior vice president of international content acquisitions for Lightning Source's parent company, Ingram, during The London Book Fair earlier this month.

“This means books can be manufactured on demand and sold to a retailer when there is an order for it,” he said.

“The difference now is that, where before, [if] you wanted a book from the US, it would have taken two to three weeks, now there is the option of ordering it from Lightning Source Sharjah and you will get it in three days.”