The thirtieth edition of the Doha Book Fair is scheduled to start tomorrow, Thursday, with the broadest participation of the private Qatari publishing houses, as this edition comes to witness a real and strong start for the Qatari culture and publishing makers. Katara Publishing House, Hamad University House, Qatar University House, Lusail Publishing and Distribution House, Rosa Publishing House, Zakrit Publishing House, Al-Wedad House for Books and Publications, Dar Al-Thaqafa Culture and Dar Al Sharq among others are participating.
The participation of the Qatar publishing houses comes within 335 publishing houses from 31 countries around the world during the fair held at the Doha Convention Centre until January 18, under the slogan “Do you not reflect”, and the French Republic will be the guest of honour of the thirtieth edition of the Doha International Book Fair since the Qatar-French cultural year 2020 is being celebrated.
Khaled Al-Muhannadi, head of the Katara House for Publishing Pavilion at the fair, said in a statement issued by Katara yesterday that the house participates with about 150 book titles, which include novels, poetry collections, critical and linguistic studies, biographies, translations, and many books on Qatar heritage, including marine heritage, Qatar people national parade (Ordat Hal Qatar), popular crafts, traditional Qatar ships, in addition to many books dealing with Qatari history as well as translated books. The Katara Publishing House participates for the third time in a row at the Doha International Book Fair, which is among the largest fairs Books in the Arab world, as well as a Cultural events accompanying the fair.
The Hamad Bin Khalifa University Publishing House also participates in the fair for the tenth year in a row, as part of its commitment to foster a love of reading and knowledge among members of society in Qatar and the Middle East. The House presents a long list of selected literary and scientific books, as it displays more than 100 new titles in both the Arabic and English languages. The House’s booth also hosts a series of authors and book signing events.
“We are always looking forward to participating in the Doha Book Fair,” said Rima Ismail, director of communication and projects for the Hamad Bin Khalifa University Publishing House. This pioneering cultural event in Qatar provides an ideal opportunity for us to affirm the House’s commitment to foster a love of reading and knowledge inside and outside the State of Qatar. Starting with fiction and non-fiction books for young and old, through academic and reference books and other important publications, our new publications clearly demonstrate that they cater to everyone’s needs and tastes. We undoubtedly look forward to continuing our participation in the Doha International Book Fair in the coming years. ”
For her part, Aisha Jassim Al-Kuwari, Chief Executive of the Rosa Publishing House, said, “The house works to support Qatari authors and provide all means to publish their books and bring them to light in a distinctive and elegant manner”, explaining that the House participates in the new edition of the Doha International Book Fair with 115 titles, including 49 new topics in various fields, including children’s literature, adolescents, novels, short stories, poetry and prose, articles, human development and studies.
She added: “The Rosa Publishing House, which is the first private Qatari publishing house, seeks leadership and excellence in disseminating intellectual production for Qatari youth, encouraging reading to the knowledge society, upgrading Arab culture and thought and benefiting from discreet experiences in the field of authoring and publishing.” She further noted that that a number of Qatari authors in the Doha fair will be present in the House’s booth to sign their recent publications, with the aim of introducing the Fair’s audience to the book and their available literature.
Lusail House for Publishing and Distribution is also preparing for a wide participation in the Doha International Book Fair by presenting a distinguished set of diverse publications of elite Qatari, Arab and foreign writers, as this year the House participates with 126 publications, suitable to the taste of all groups and ages, as its topics vary between literature, thought, technology politics, sociology, philosophy, education, novels, children’s stories, sports, translation, and more.
Khaled Mubarak Al-Dulaimi, Managing Director of Lusail House, said in a statement about the House that this year it has issued a set of valuable and varied publications, that include a series of creative writings by senior Qatari and Arab writers. This the House does based on the House’s social role in contributing to building a generation of intellectuals and providing all means of Support for talented beginners writers, and helping them fulfil their ambition to publish their work. He also stressed that the participation of Lusail House in the Doha International Book Fair in its 2020 edition will be distinguished, and the house will hold events that appeal to young and old.
The participation of the House in the fair comes for the second time. The House’s pavilion will host many important activities that enrich the Qatari and Arab cultural scene. It has been able during a few period and through its publications, participation and attendance at the largest Arab and international fairs to be among the most important Arab publishing institutions that care for the Arab culture issues and civilizational questions through the care it gives to the Arab writer, and its commitment to seeking cultural mobility.
Among the emerging roles in the publishing world is that of Dar Al-Watad, which participates in the forthcoming edition of the Doha International Book Fair. Ibrahim Abdul Rahim Al-Bouhachem, the director of the House, explains that Dar Al-Watad which is starting its march on the publishing path, is participating this year in the fair. Nevertheless, the House will present a set of 35 publications for 2019, in addition to previous releases. He further indicated that these publications include literary as well as scientific books covering a number of areas, most notably psychology, law and economics, pointing out that the house will provide a diverse cultural program as well as book signatures events during the fair.
Within the same framework, the Zakrit House for Publishing and Distribution participates in the fair with a selection of publications that reach more than 30 new titles: scientific, cultural, religious and literary including law, history, translations and Quranic studies in addition to the narrative field, in addition to its other publications which include 15 titles that vary between Poetry, articles, story, children literature, self-development sciences, Islamic intellectual studies and educational as well as economics.
The House has issued a variety of publications for a group of Qatari, Gulf and Arab writers, in addition to adopting publications for a group of Qatari young women to encourage promising Qatari talents. The House’s booth will contain some artistic works such as plastic arts, poetry and literary sessions since the House believes in the integration of cultures between the various expressive arts, in addition to signing sessions for publications at the booth. The house aims to enrich the family library with a variety of different knowledge topics, and various types of arts and literature. The mechanism for selecting books in the House is carried out through presenting them to the reading committee, which consists of a group of experts and opinion-holders in the various areas of knowledge for approval, and then adoption by the House.
It is worth noting that the Doha International Book Fair in its thirtieth edition includes 335 publishing houses from 31 countries, including new countries participating for the first time such as Belgium and Australia. Moreover, the fair includes 797 booths distributed over 29 thousand square meters. It is designed in a different and distinct way this year for ease of access to the required resources. The main area in the middle of the fair has been dedicated to events as the cultural year Qatar-France is celebrated. There are also rich cultural events both in the main theatre, the cultural salon, cultural cafes and the Qatar School for Children’s Activities, as well as allocating a centre for media professionals.
The Fair’s working hours were fixed from Saturday to Wednesday from nine in the morning until nine in the evening, on Thursday from nine in the morning until ten in the evening and Friday from three in the afternoon until ten in the evening. The necessary facilities were provided to give a more enjoyable experience to visitors of the Doha International Book Fair.