Badriah Al Bishr. Courtesy Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature
Badriah Al Bishr. Courtesy Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature
Badriah Al Bishr. Courtesy Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature
Badriah Al Bishr. Courtesy Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature

Emirates Lit Fest 2017: Arab authors to look out for


  • English
  • Arabic

Though the big-name ­international authors appearing at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, such as Jeffery Archer and crime novelist Kathy Reichs, often get the most attention, it is worth remembering there are 140 writers attending the event.

Among them are some of the biggest names in the Arab literary world. All Arabic sessions will be translated into English, so ­everyone can share their ideas on literature, writing and ­translation to as wide an audience as ­possible. Here are a few of the most notable regional names to look out for.

Badriah Al Bishr

A novelist, columnist and journalist from Saudi Arabia, Al Bishr published three collections of short stories in the 1990s, followed by several novels. One of these – Love Stories on Al Asha Street – was longlisted for the 2014 International Prize for Arabic Fiction.

Her latest work, Thursday’s ­Visitors, addresses the issues facing modern women in conservative Arab society. She will talk about the novel on March 9, and will also take part in a discussion on Monday, about how best to speak up for gender equality. Both sessions are in Arabic, with English translation.

Izzeldin Abuelaish

Hailed as the "the Martin ­Luther King of the Middle East", ­Abuelaish is a Palestinian-­Canadian doctor. His award-­winning book I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity, is an autobiography inspired by the loss of his three daughters and their cousin to Israeli tank fire.

Abuelaish will host a ­discussion on March 9, during which he will speak (in English, with Arabic translation) about the ­peacemaking mission that has taken him all over the world. He will also take part in a discussion on identity and nationalism on March 10.

Ibrahim Farghali

An Egyptian writer and journalist, Farghali's latest work, Ma'bad Anamel Al-Harir (The Temple of Silk Fingertips), was longlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction last year and he recently won the Sawiris Cultural Award for best novel in the established-­writers category.

Although best known for his fiction, Farghali is also the author of two travel books, including an account of his adventures in Africa, Asia and Europe.

On March 11, he will take part in a panel discussion about ­documenting memories during a journey. The day before, Farghali will be part of a workshop for young adults and teenagers exploring how to write fantasy fiction.

Results

6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m

Winner: Ziyadd, Richard Mullen (jockey), Jean de Roualle (trainer).

7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m

Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.

7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m

Winner: Secret Advisor, Tadhg O’Shea, Charlie Appleby.

8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner: Plata O Plomo, Carlos Lopez, Susanne Berneklint.

8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m

Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.

9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m

Winner: Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.

The specs

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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog

Name: Marie Byrne

Nationality: Irish

Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption

Book: Seagull by Jonathan Livingston

Life lesson: A person is not old until regret takes the place of their dreams

The biog

Hobby: "It is not really a hobby but I am very curious person. I love reading and spend hours on research."

Favourite author: Malcom Gladwell 

Favourite travel destination: "Antigua in the Caribbean because I have emotional attachment to it. It is where I got married."

Electric scooters: some rules to remember
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How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars

Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.

Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.

After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.

Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.

It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.

 

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