Qualities that Make the Etisalat Award for Arabic Children's Literature Jury Members Pick Their Favourites

A panel discussion with jury members of this year’s edition at SIBF 2016 

Sharjah, UAE, 3 November 2016:  The UAE Board on Books for Young People (UAEBBY) organised a discussion panel that addressed the mission of the 8th edition of Etisalat Award’s jury. Held at the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) 2016, the session shed light on the award’s eligibility criteria and conditions as well as how the winning titles enriched children’s literature in the fields of content, language, style and techniques.

The session moderated by Eman Mohammed, Programs and Award Executive at the UAEBBY, featured all the award’s judging panel members, PhD Hanada Taha, Endowed Chair Professor of Arabic Language at Zayed University; Balsam Saad, Founder and Managing Director of Al Balsam Publishing House, Egypt; Saudi Arabian author Majid Al Salman; Abdullah Al Sharhan, illustrator from the UAE; Gita Wolf, Founder of Tara Publishing, India.

PhD Hanada Taha said; “The Etisalat Award for Arabic Children's Literature has developed the children’s book industry in a way that we have never seen before. We, at the jury, faced significant challenges in selecting the winning titles because there were many excellent submissions and quality titles. We were in an absolute dilemma as we were forced to choose one out of very good books and even excellent titles.”

“One of the books submitted, Hawadeet Al Khatateen (Calligraphers Tales), written by Mohieddin Al-Labbad, and published by Dar Al Shorouk did not belong to the award’s categories, because it was a realistic narrative on Arabic calligraphy. However, it caught the attention of all jury members, and we made it a point to give it a special mention at this session. It addresses the history of Arabic calligraphy in an unparalleled way and it is simple, attractive and very interesting,” she added.

Balsam Saad expressed her happiness about the submitted titles, and stressed that the jury was committed to being true to the award’s standards and criteria, related to texts and production. She also commended the diversification of the entries in the children's books category. 

Abdullah Al Sharhan, emphasised that the jury was looking for something new and extraordinary – something strikingly innovative, creative with the ability to inspire children’s curiosity, leading them to ask several questions. He proposed to add comic books to the five categories of the Etisalat Award, pointing out that in this type of art the artist plays the role of the author, illustrator, and director at the same time. 

Gita Wolf said; “It is great to see such diversity in Arab children's books. Despite the Arab diaspora, and the challenges that face many Arab countries, the Arab world is still able to provide the literary sphere with quality books. I would like to thank Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature, and the UAEBBY for providing me with the opportunity to take a closer look at the rich cultural and literary events in the UAE in general and in Sharjah in particular.”

Majid Al Salman brought up an important point in stating that writing for children is difficult, and that the submitted titles in children’s book category showcased excellence, with very few titles not making the mark. Some young adults’ books did not match the age group in their discussion of ideas, which were somewhat more mature or sometimes even inferior for their ages.  Few titles included long monologues, which does not necessarily make a novel or story, because novels and stories are a combination of time, place and fluid characters. 

The session also discussed the challenge of sometimes not being able to the distinguish age groups that certain books that enter the competition cater to, especially in the categories of children and young adults. The jury recommended developing a uniform rating system based on specific criteria, and have it approved by all participating countries. The judging panel also recommended the need to include font size, type of graphics, choice of vocabulary in these standards.