Staff Report
Dubai: The UAE’s annual celebration of the written and spoken word, the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, has announced its strongest ever line-up for its 10th anniversary event, which takes place from 1-10 March 2018.
Bestselling international authors David Walliams, Alexander McCall Smith, Shashi Tharoor and 2017 International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) winner Mohammed Hasan Alwan are just some of the renowned names who are now on sale.
Early bids include Anthony Horowitz, Jacqueline Wilson, Levison Wood, Kate Adie. Following his sell-out sessions last year, the UAE Ambassador to France, His Excellency Omar Saif Ghobash and Tom Fletcher.
This year’s landmark event features some of the biggest names in the poetry world, including Khalid AlBudoor, Nujoom Nasser AlGhanem, spoken word artist Afra Atiq, UK Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, Simon Armitage, John Agard, Imtiaz Dharker, Roger McGough, Grace Nichols, Lemn Sissay and World Poetry Slam Champion Harry Baker.
Saroo Brierley, whose story inspired the Oscar-nominated film Lion, starring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman, will talk about his life and introduce a special screening of the film, in partnership with Dubai International Film Festival.
Furthermore, the best columnist and author Cheryl Strayed, Kevin Kwan and James Dashner will also feature in the event.
Festival is held in partnership with Emirates Airline and the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, the Emirate’s dedicated entity for culture, arts and heritage, and the author list was presented during the launch event at the home of the Festival at Dubai Festival City. However, the Early Bird Discount offer ends on 24 November 2017. The
Speaking at the event, Isobel Abulhoul, OBE, CEO and Trustee of the Emirates Literature Foundation and Director of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, said: ‘When we started 10 years ago, none of us could have foreseen the enormous positive impact the Festival has had on the literary scene in the region. Thanks to our patron His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the Festival has been able to blaze a trail and become a Festival of international standing, attracting authors from across the globe. In our first year 65 authors attended. Since 2009 more than 1000 bestselling authors have visited Dubai, helping to share our passion for reading, opening the door to other worlds and building an appreciation of different genres, viewpoints and cultures.”
