The 44th Sharjah International Book Fair will welcome acclaimed Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and celebrate Greece as Guest of Honour, organisers announced on Thursday.
Taking place at Expo Centre Sharjah from November 6 to 17, the event will host 2,350 publishers and exhibitors from 118 countries. This year’s fair will feature more than 1,200 activities led by 251 guests from 66 countries, including over 300 cultural events and 750 workshops for children and adults.
Adichie, author of Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah, will join a line-up of international writers, including Italian physicist and author Carlo Rovelli, Irish novelist Paul Lynch, British psychologist Dr Julie Smith, American science communicator Armen Adamjan, Indian creator Prajakta Koli, British archaeologist David Wengrow and Canadian thriller author Jennifer Hillier.
Among Arab and Emirati participants are historian and researcher Dr Hamad bin Seray, poet and filmmaker Nujoom Al Ghanem, Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, Egyptian author Mo Gawdat, Tunisian actor and director Dhafer L’Abidine, Lebanese writer Joumana Haddad and Saudi writer Muhammad Reda Nasrallah.
This year’s fair introduces several new features, including the Poetry Pharmacy, Pop-Up Academy and Podcast Station, alongside a series of multilingual poetry evenings featuring performances in eight languages.
The event will also host the fourth Thriller Festival from November 8 to 11, organised in collaboration with Thriller Festival New York. The event will feature international writers such as British author Araminta Hall, Icelandic crime novelist Ragnar Jonasson, and American screenwriter Matt Witten, known for House and Law & Order.
The fair, organised by the Sharjah Book Authority, is one of the world’s largest book fairs, drawing millions of visitors and thousands of publishers each year.
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TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
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Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
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Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
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UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
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1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
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Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
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Price: From Dh1,700,000
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- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
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Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
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