Frankenstein tale wins Arabic Fiction prize

Iraqi novelist, poet and screenwriter Ahmed Saadawi has won the 2014 International Prize for Arabic Fiction with his novel Frankenstein in Baghdad (Al-Jamal).

Saadawi was announced as the winner of the $50,000 (£30,500) Prize at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi last night (Tuesday 29th April). He also receives a further $10,000 (£6,100) alongside the five other shortlisted authors and is guaranteed an English translation of his novel.
 
Set in the spring of 2005, Frankenstein in Baghdad tells the story of a rag-and-bone man who lives in Baghdad and takes the body parts of those killed in explosions and sews them together to create a new body. The body is entered by a displaced soul, bringing it to life, then begins a campaign of revenge against those who killed him, or killed those whose parts make up his body.
 
This year’s chair of judges Saad A Albazei said the book was "a significant addition to contemporary Arabic fiction" because of the originality of its narrative structure, and its expert telling from multiple viewpoints. Yasir Suleiman, who is professor of Modern Arabic Studies and chair of the Board of IPAF Trustees, said the winning novel was “an outstanding achievement, teeming with characters who are both earthy and real but also transcend reality. It raises questions about an oppressive legacy from which neither individuals nor society can escape. The novel dazzles with captivating storytelling, utilising the techniques of magical realism to reveal the depths of the human soul in its darkest hours.”

He added: “Although set in Baghdad, its subject matter goes beyond that city to embrace humanity everywhere.”   

Saadawi was born in Baghdad, where he works as a documentary film-maker. He has previously had a volume of poetry and two other novels published. He took part in the annual IPAF ‘Nadwa’ literary workshop for promising young writers in 2012 and featured in the Beirut 39 Festival as one of the best 39 Arab authors under 40 in 2010.

The Prize winner announcement took place on the eve of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair 2014. Saadawi will take part in his first public event at the book fair today (Wednesday 30th April).

The novel was selected as the best work of fiction published within the last 12 months from 156 entries from 18 countries across the Arab World.

Also shortlisted novels were: A Rare Blue Bird that Flies with Me by Youssef Fadel (Dar al-Adab); Tashari by Inaam Kachachi (Dar al-Jadid); No Knives in this City's Kitchens by Khaled Khalifa (Dar al-Ain); The Journeys of 'Abdi, known as Son of Hamriya by Abdelrahim Lahbibi (Africa East); and The Blue Elephant by Ahmed Mourad (Dar al-Shorouq).

In addition to Albazei, the judging panel included Libyan journalist, novelist and playwright Ahmed Alfaitouri; Moroccan academic, critic and novelist Zhor Gourram; Iraqi academic and critic Abdullah Ibrahim, and Mehmet Hakki Suçin, a Turkish academic specialising in teaching the Arabic language and the translation of Arabic literature into Turkish.

The is the seventh year of the Prize, which is supported by the Booker Prize Foundation in London and funded by the TCA Abu Dhabi in the UAE.