By Abdul Basit
The highly anticipated 41st edition of the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) kicked off on Wednesday under the slogan ‘Spread the Word’ and runs until November 13 at Expo Centre Sharjah.
The 12-day cultural extravaganza celebrates the world’s cultures by hosting a galaxy of distinguished authors, intellectuals, publishers, artists and creatives from 95 countries, and fêtes Italy as the Guest of Honour of the 2022 edition.
Organised by the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), the international book fair enables visitors to meet Booker Prize laureates, international screenwriters, and artists, in addition to exploring countries from around the world through publishers’ pavilions, Cookery Station, and a diverse agenda of activities that comprise musical performances, plays, and theatrical shows.
This year, SIBF 2022 is hosting 2,213 publishers, comprising 1,298 from the Arab region and 915 from around the world.
The 41st edition will stage 123 awe-inspiring theatrical performances as well as musicals led by 22 artists and performers from eight countries, including six new programmes and more than 30 activities led by renowned Arab and international chefs.
‘Spread the Word’
Through SIBF 2022 slogan ‘Spread the Word’, the international book fair conveys the message: “Words can build the future and change realities, so befriend and stay close to them”. The 41st edition will showcase 1.5 million titles.
As part of the book fair’s cultural programme this year, SIBF will host 150 distinguished authors, intellectuals and creatives who will lead 1,500 activities and sessions including 200 activities encompassing workshops, talks, and seminars.
For children, SIBF 2022 will organise 623 activities, shows and workshops led by 45 professionals and experts from 14 countries, including ‘Toy Tale’, an exciting musical that explores the impact of children’s addiction to video games.
Meanwhile, comics enthusiasts and lovers will have an opportunity to participate in a whopping 188 activities and workshops covering 16 topics, in addition to four roaming shows.
The activities and workshops cover topics as varied as NFTs, character creation, and chibified characters.
Amongst Arab publishers, the UAE tops the list followed by Egypt and Lebanon.
On the international level, India, the UK, and Italy take the top positions and will showcase their titles across an 18,000 sq m area alongside Cuba, Costa Rica, Liberia, Philippines, Ireland, Malta, Mali, Jamaica, Iceland and Hungary, who are participating for the first time in SIBF, among others.
Sharjah International Library Conference and National Libraries Summit
In partnership with the American Library Association, SBA will host the second edition of the two-day National Libraries Summit at Expo Centre Sharjah on November 6–7, that will bring together delegates from 30 countries.
The 9th Sharjah International Library Conference (SILC), running from November 8-10, will bring together an international group of librarians and experts representing various libraries in the US and countries around the world.
