By Chip Rossetti Last fall marked the release of Tablet & Pen: Literary Landscapes from the Modern Middle East, an anthology of modern Middle Eastern literature in translation that has had a surprising success in the American market. Tablet & Pen represents a fruitful collaboration between the literature-in-translation online magazine Words Without Borders and anthology editor Reza Aslan, author of …
Best of Publishing Perspectives 2010: Middle East and China
Markets like China and others in the Middle East have shown that they have huge capacity for growth and can offer opportunities to Western publishing companies. In order for you to get to know these markets better, here are our top articles on China and the Middle East from 2010. China The E-reader Market in China (And Its Unique Business …
Chair of Judges for the Arabic Booker Discusses the Shortlist
By Olivia Snaije The shortlist for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) — better known as the Arabic Booker — was released last week; the winner — who receives $50,000 (shortlisted authors receive $10,000 — will be announced March 14, 2011 during the Abu Dhabi Book Fair. The six writers on the shortlist are from Egypt, Morocco, Sudan and …
Penguin Enters Arab Market with Joint Venture
By Hannah Johnson Pearson PLC announced today that its Penguin Group has launched a joint venture with Egyptian publisher Dar El Shorouk. The “Shorouk-Penguin project” will translate into Arabic 12 English-language titles from the Penguin Classics series, in addition to publishing up to eight original Arabic classics. The first titles will be available in early 2011. According to the press …
Publishers Training Abu Dhabi, Day 4: Quality Control, Enhanced E-books
Salwa Shakhshir, a children’s book publisher from Amman, Jordan, attended the second annual Publishers Training program organized by KITAB and The Center for Publishing at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies in Abu Dhabi. She’s documented her experiences for Publishing Perspectives. Read coverage of Day 1, Day 2, Day 3. By Salwa Shakhshir Our final day of training focused …
Is the Gulf Becoming Too Westernized?
By Ali Alsaloom The United Arab Emirates has moved from the camel to the Cadillac in a very short amount of time. Where our Bedouin forefathers once lived just to survive another day in the punishing desert climes, we drive air-conditioned cars to air-conditioned malls. So it might seem strange to suggest a return to the camel, yet that is …
Iraqi Books Hit the International Market for First Time Since the War
• Iraq’s publishing and bookselling industry has been damaged by decades of war, sanctions and violence. • However, Baghdad’s al-Muthanna Library — a traditional Iraqi publishing and bookselling powerhouse — has just released its first catalog of fiction and non-fiction titles for the international market since the war. By Chip Rossetti BAGHDAD: Founded in 1936, the al-Muthanna Library in Baghdad …
Sharjah’s Int’l Book Fair Makes a Big Push for UK and US Publishers
• Sharjah’s International Book Fair, October 26 to November 6, emphasizes collaboration with western publishers. • Several new awards were bestowed at this year’s Fair to highlight excellence in English-language publishing. By Roger Tagholm SHARJAH, UAE: It was a good day for Chicago at the Sharjah International Book Fair’s inaugural international awards, presented by His Highness Sheik Dr. Sultan bin …
Do Cash Awards Promote Publishing in Growth Markets?
By Edward Nawotka Today’s lead story covers the ongoing Sharjah International Book Fair. This year, the Fair introduced three new book awards for English language works (discussed in the piece). In addition, the Egypt-based Dar El Shorouk won the second edition of the Etisalat Prize for Arabic Children’s Literature with the book, Al Noqta Al Sawda (The Black Dot), written …
Lebanon’s Francophone Book Fair Honors Camus, Features Local, Int’l Talents
By Olivia Snaije Opening on the heels of the Francophone summit in Montreux, Switzerland – Lebanon’s 17th Francophone book fair kicks off this Thursday in Beirut and runs until November 7th. Articles about the former French protectorate regularly lament the loss of French speakers to English but the Beirut event has nevertheless gained the status of being the third Francophone …