Sheikh Zayed Book Award Hosts Trends in Children’s Literature - Arab and German Voices at the Frankfurt Book Fair
Date October, 17 2019
Location Frankfurt, Germany
The Sheikh Zayed Book Award hosted a panel discussion entitled 'Children's Literature Today - Voices from the Arab and German World' yesterday, as part of its participation in the Frankfurt International Book Fair, taking place from 16 to 20 October 2019.
The event, held in partnership with the German Litprom Cultural Foundation, saw participation from Kuwaiti author Hussain Al Mutawaa, a Sheikh Zayed Book Award 2019 winner in 'Children's Literature' category; Dr. Christiane Raabe, the celebrated German children's book author and Director of the International Youth Library in Munich; Stephan Trudewind, Publisher of Edition Orient, Berlin; and Stefan Weidner, a noted German writer, translator and arabist. The conversation focused on children's literature, discussing the latest trends and developments in the sector. A key theme was the importance of increasing the number of translation projects in this field, fostering cross-cultural understanding by facilitating access to children's stories from around the world.
The seminar discussed children's literature between the Arab and German cultures and their common sources of inspiration, where each adapts its children-directed content to its acquired culture, trends and the new challenges it faces.
Speakers
Hussain Almutawaa
A Kuwaiti writer and photographer born in 1989, Almutawaa attained a Bachelor’s degree in Literature and Criticism from the College of Arabic Language at the University of Kuwait, minoring in Philosophy. He started his literary career as a poet in
Stefan Weidner
Stefan Weidner is a renowned German writer, translator, and literary critic, with a specialization in Arabic literature. In September 2019 his collection of critical essays, 1,001 Books, will be published by Edition Converso, Germany. Weidner will speak about this project, which situates Arabic literature in the context of world literature today, shedding new light onto it from the perspective of postcolonial theory on one hand and the interested Western readership on the other.
Dr. Christiane Raabe
German children's book author and Director of the International Youth Library in Munich
Stephan Trudewind
Stephan Trudewind, Publisher of Edition Orient, Berlin