Algerian novelist wins Arab world’s top literary prize
Algerian novelist Abdelouahab Aissaoui has won the Arab world’s top literary prize known as the Arabic Booker for his novel` The Spartan Court, ‘ the organisers, said on Tuesday.
The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) was launched in Abu Dhabi in 2007 to recognise Arabic fiction and encourage its translation to other languages.
“The Spartan Court’’ follows five characters living in Algiers under colonialism in the early 1800s.
“It is polyphonic with multiple voices telling the story.’’
“Readers gain a multi-layered insight into the historical occupation of Algeria and, from this, the conflicts of the entire Mediterranean region,’’ said Muhsin al-Musawi, head of the judging panel.
Born in 1985 in Algeria’s central city of Djelfa, Aissaoui studied electromechanical engineering.
Since 2012, he has published five novels and a short story collection.
Every year a ceremony was held in the United Arab Emirates’ capital Abu Dhabi, but the announcement for 2020 was made online amid restrictive travel and movement measures worldwide due to the novel coronavirus.
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Aissaoui’s grand prize includes 50,000 dollars and an English translation of his novel.
He was among six Arab writers shortlisted for the award, where each will receive 10,000 dollars.
The shortlisted novels did not reproduce the miserable reality for the reader, al-Musawi said, but instead included light, hope and salvation to humanity.
The prize is supported by the Booker Prize Foundation in London and funded by governmental Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority. (dpa)
