The winner of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction 2021 will be announced at an online event on Tuesday 25th May from 10 am (BST) / 1 pm (GST). The event will celebrate the impact of the prize and feature contributions from the IPAF chair of Trustees Yasir Suleiman, administrator Fleur Montanaro and this year’s chair of Judges Chawki Bazih. The event will be streamed on IPAF’s Facebook and YouTube channels. The Abu Dhabi Book Fair takes place from 23 to 29 May 2021.
The event will be followed by a press conference with the 2021 winner from 10.45 am (BST)/1.45 pm (GST) on Zoom in English and Arabic.
The 2021 shortlist of Arabic Fiction, with author names in alphabetical order, is as follows:
Author: Abdulatif Ould Abdullah
Title: The Eye of Hammurabi
Country of origin Algeria
Publisher Dar Mim
Jalal Barjas
Notebooks of the Bookseller
Jordan
The Arabic Institute for Research and Publishing
Amira Ghenim
Calamity of the Nobility
Tunisia
Dar Mesaa
Dunya Mikhail
The Bird Tattoo
Iraq
Dar al-Rafidain
Abdelmajid Sebbata
File 42
Morocco
Al-Markez al-Thaqafi al-Arabi
Habib Selmi
Longing for the Woman Next Door
Tunisia
Dar al-Adab
To celebrate this year’s shortlist, several online events and shortlist activities will take place. Before the winner announcement, the 2021 Judges will present this year’s shortlist. In the lead-up to this year’s winner announcement, the 2021 judging panel will present a series of short discussions celebrating the 2021 shortlist. The series will be hosted by Moroccan writer, broadcaster, and Prize Trustee Yassin Adnan.
Videos discussing novels by Jalal Bargas, Habib Selmi, and Abdelmajid Sebbata are available on the IPAF YouTube channel. The remaining schedule is as follows: Tue 18 May, 3 pm (BST) / 6 pm (GST) – Chawki Bazih presents The Eye of Hammurabi by Abdulatif Ould Abdullah.
Wed 19 May, 3 pm (BST) / 6 pm (GST) – Ali Al-Muqri presents The Calamity of the Nobility by Amira Ghenim.
Thu 20 May, 3 pm (BST) / 6 pm (GST) – Safa Jubran presents The Bird Tattoo by Dunya Mikhail.
Excerpts from this year’s six shortlisted novels will be available to read on the IPAF website in Arabic and English before the winner announcement.
After the winner announcement on Thursday 27 May, Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, 3 pm (BST) / 6 pm (GST) IPAF: Honouring the 2021 winner and shortlisted authors. To celebrate the 2021 winner and shortlisted authors, Bilal Orfali will interview Abdelmajid Sebbata, Abdulatif Ould Abdullah, Dunya Mikhail, Habib Selmi, Jalal Barjas, and Amira Ghenim. They will discuss their journey, from idea to finished book.
The 2021 judging panel will choose this year’s winner from the shortlist of six novels, all published in Arabic between 1st July 2019 and 31st August 2020. Chawki Bazih chairs the judging panel. Judging alongside him are Mohammed Ait Hanna, Safa Jubran, Ali Al-Muqri, and Ayesha Sultan.
The International Prize for Arabic Fiction is an annual literary prize for novels in Arabic. It is currently sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre, under the umbrella of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi. It has been mentored by the Booker Prize Foundation in London.
