The Sheikh Zayed Book Award, announced its ‘Young Author' longlist for the twelfth edition, consisting of 12 titles out of 307 nominations.
Out of the 12 nominated works, the long list includes 7 narrative works, 2 academic dissertations, and 3 critical studies for writers and researchers from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Morocco, Algeria, and the UAE, Reuters reported.
As for the narrative works, they include ‘al panda’ (The Panda) by Syrian author Rahim Hassawi, ‘amtar sayfiyyah’ (Summer Rains) by Egyptian writer Ahmad Al-Qarmalawi, and ‘reih al-sharki’ (The winds of sharki) by Moroccan author Mohsine Loukili. As for the poetry category, they include ‘ala hamesh al-najat’ (On the margin of survival) by Syrian writer Lina Atfeh, ‘qawarir’ (Flasks) by Jordanian poet Ameen al-Rabee’, ‘la shai’a youji’oni’ (Nothing hurts me) by Egyptian writer Hamza Qannawi, and ‘atalasha…kathilli ‘abi’ (I wither…like my father’s shadow) by Iraqi poet Shaker Al Ghezi.
In the academic dissertations and critical studies, the list named: falsafat al-sarf al’arabi’ (The philosophy of Arabic Inflection) by Lebanese scholar Khaled Kammouny, al-dars al-balaghi al-arabi: bayn al-seemya’iat wa tahleel al-khitab’ (Arabic Rhetoric: from Semiotics to discourse analysis) by Algerian academic Lakhdari Saad, and ‘ta’ammolat fe shi’r mohmal’ (contemplations of neglected poetry) by Emirati scholar Naser Laith al-Taee, in addition to ‘as’ilat nash’at al-sardiyyah al-arabiyah al hadeetha’ (Questions of the Rise of Arabic Narrative) by Moroccan scholar Ahmed El-Jorti, and ‘heena yaghdou al-jasad kalimah’ (When the body becomes a word) by Algerian academic Baha Bennouar.
The total value of the Sheikh Zayed Book Awards is AED 7 million (about USD1.9 million) distributed over nine categories.
The winner of the "Cultural Personality of the Year Award" receives AED 1 million, while the other six million are distributed on eight branches, and each winner receives AED 750,000.
