Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation publishing book wins leading award at prestigious Edinburgh International Book Festival

Mai Al-Nakib, whose debut book was published through Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Publishing (BQFP), a member of Qatar for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), has won the Edinburgh International Book Festival’s 2014 First Book Award.

A Kuwaiti author, Mai Al-Nakib won with The Hidden Light of Objects, a stunning collection of short stories, which explores the private struggles of adolescence, marriage and middle age by taking a quiet look at the lives of ordinary people living in the Middle East.

By presenting the outside world with exceptional literary works of Gulf and Arab writers such as The Hidden Light of Objects, BQFP is supporting QF on its mission of fostering a progressive, engaged society appreciative of its heritage.

Mai Al-Nakib’s debut literary work, written in English, features stories ranging from the invasion of Kuwait to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the US occupation of Iraq. This is the first time the award has been given to a collection of short stories and only the second time it has been granted to an international writer.

On winning the award, Mai Al-Nakib said: “I am incredibly grateful for this award. It was a tremendous honour to be included among the stellar group of 46 writers nominated for the Edinburgh International Book Festival’s First Book Award.

“This was my first time at the Book Festival, and I cannot thank the organisers enough for their support. To have my book selected by readers is especially encouraging. It means so much to know that readers from all over the world are connecting with ‘The Hidden Light of Objects.’ Perhaps this suggests that some are eager to discover other versions of the Middle East than those commonly depicted in the media.”

Arend Küster, Acting Director of Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation added: “We are very proud that our author Mai Al-Nakib has been honoured by this award. It speaks volumes for the book and for the general interest in new voices from the Gulf and the Arab peninsula. Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation will thrive by bringing more of these exciting voices to readers, locally and internationally.”

Now in its fifth year, the First Book Award encourages the Festival audience to discover the wealth of debut fiction featured in the Edinburgh International Book Festival programme. A total of 46 novels and short story collections were eligible for the 2014 award, and readers were invited to vote for their favourite. Over 2,200 votes were received by the closing date and for the first time in the Award’s history, the winning book is a short story collection.

BQFP has published several important literary works such as ‘The Corsair’ by Qatari engineer and journalist Abdul Aziz Al Mahmoud.