Abu Dhabi, 20 December 2018: The Sheikh Zayed Book Award (SZBA) is organizing a children’s storytelling event in collaboration with Magrudy’s Bookstore on Thursday, 27 December 2018. The storytelling session is a continuation of the Award’s series of events dedicated to promoting children’s literature and instilling values of tolerance in children.
The event will feature the talented Emirati author Hessa Al Muhairi who will narrate her SZBA award-winning story “The Dinoarf” with simultaneous English translation provided by Syrian translator and theatre actress, Hala Bassar.
The ‘Dinoraf’ story is set in the Animal Kingdom, where a dinosaur is out on a mission to find his parallel among the rest of animals. Throughout his journey, he gets to know the differences between the animals, which finally lead him to find his connection with the giraffe, hence becoming the “Dinoraf”, in a unique portrayal of the contemporary case of peaceful coexistence and mutual acceptance of cultural differences.
Dr. Ali bin Tamim, Secretary General of Sheikh Zayed Book Award said: “His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, announced 2019 as the ‘Year of Tolerance’ in order to deepen the values of tolerance and co-existence among people from different cultures, and Sheikh Zayed Book Award prides itself in serving this wise vision through organizing cultural events locally and internationally.”
Commenting on this occasion, Co-founder of Magrudy’s Bookstore, Isobel Abulhoul said: “The father of our nation, the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, set out to ensure that reading and literature remained an important aspect of culture. When the Sheikh Zayed Book Award was founded in 2006 it included a prize for the best children's literature, a clear sign of his wise vision.”
She added: “Magrudy's bookshops have always, in their long history, had a key focus on children's books, and ensuring that the Arabic children's books are prominently displayed is part of that. Magrudy's is
honored to partner with the Sheikh Zayed Book Award to celebrate the winner of the children's prize, and thereby to encourage children to fall in love with reading and books.”
Sheikh Zayed Book Award Winner, Hessa Al Muhairi holds a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and a Double Master of Science in Education Management and Policy from Deakin University Australia; she has been working as a nursery teacher since her graduation. Al Muhairi participated in a lot of Children’s Literature workshops and managed a number of training programs. She has two published books for children; ”Whose Footprints are These?; and “The Dinoraf.”