19-02-2025
International prize for Arabic fiction, Iraqi novel nominated
Shafaq News/ Iraqi author Azhar Jargis' novel 'Valley of Butterflies' was shortlisted on Wednesday for the 18th edition of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language.
The shortlist includes six novels from Iraq, Mauritania, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and the UAE. The nominated works are Valley of Butterflies by Jargis,"Danshamand" by Mauritania's Ahmed Fall El-Din, 'The Andalusian Christ' by Syria's Tayseer Khalaf, 'The Women's Pact' by Lebanon's Haneen Al-Sayegh, 'The Prayer of Anxiety' by Egypt's Mohamed Samir Nada, and 'The Touch of Light' by the UAE's Nadia Al-Najjar.
Each novel on the shortlist will receive $10,000, with the winner receiving an additional $50,000. The winner will be announced on April 24 in Abu Dhabi.
The shortlist announcement took place at a press conference on Wednesday at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt.
Yasser Suleiman, Chairman of the Prize's Board of Trustees, commented, 'The International Prize for Arabic Fiction has become the most prestigious literary award in the Arab world and globally in its field', stressing that it is not just a claim but a clear fact in the cultural landscape, making this prize ours collectively writers, critics, publishers, media, and above all, Arab readers.'
This year's competition received 124 submissions, from which 16 novels were selected for the longlist in January.
Egyptian academic and head of the jury, Mona Baker, stated that reaching the longlist is already a partial victory. She noted that the jury used a set of well-established literary criteria, with language being a central factor. Extensive discussions were held at each stage, from the initial selection to the final shortlist.
