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In a landslide win, four of Hamad Bin Khalifa University Press’s latest titles have been named Winner in the 2019 International Book Awards(IBA), with several others named Finalist as well.
Among the winning titles include: Gardening in Arabia: Fruiting Plants in Qatar and the Arabian Gulf by Shuaa Abdullah Al-Sada in the category of Home & Garden; Bloodstone by Tim Mackintosh-Smith in the category of Fiction: Multicultural; The Light of Hope, written by Basma El-Khatib, illustrated by Bilal Bassal and translated by Ghenwa Yehia, in the category of Children's Mind/Body/Spirit; and Alphabet City, written by Omar Khalifa and illustrated by Fabiola Colavecchio, in the category of Children's Novelty & Gift Book.
This year, which marks the award’s 10th annual year, there were over 2,000 entries from all over the world in the various categories. The IBA, which is sponsored by the American Book Fest, highlights a wide variety of outstanding literary fiction and non-fiction works that are the best in their categories. A distinguished panel of industry judges, who brought to the table their extensive editorial, PR, marketing, and design expertise, narrowed down the 2,000 entries to the winners and finalists.
HBKU Press’s list of finalists include: The Gulf Crisis: The View from Qatar, edited by Rory Miller and authored by faculty members from HBKU and QF partner universities, in the categories of Multicultural Non-Fiction and Social Change; Gardening in Arabia: Ornamental Trees in Qatar and the Arabian Gulf by Shuaa Abdullah Al-Sada in the category of Home & Garden; Bloodstone by Tim Mackintosh-Smith in the categories of Fiction: Historical and Fiction: Thriller/Adventure; Lost in Thyme by Lilas Taha in the category of Fiction: Inspirational; After Coffee written by Abdelrashid Mahmoudi and translated by Nashwa Gowanlock in the category of Fiction: Multicultural; Alphabet City written by Omar Khalifa and illustrated by Fabiola Colavecchio, in the category of Children's Educational; and A Recipe for Home written by Ghenwa Yehia and illustrated by Inna Ogando, in the category of Children's Picture Book: Softcover Fiction.
“HBKU Press is extremely proud of all of the authors, illustrators, and translators who won this year at the 2019 International Book Awards,” explains Bachar Chebaro, Executive Director of Hamad Bin Khalifa University Press. “We pride ourselves on publishing quality books with both written and illustrated content that highlights HBKU Press’s values and our commitment to showcasing a variety of important narratives from the region. For these books to be recognized internationally is a milestone achievement for us all.”
Jeffrey Keen, President and CEO of American Book Fest, said, “The 2019 results represent a phenomenal mix of books from a wide array of publishers throughout the world. With a full publicity and marketing campaign promoting the results of IBA, this year’s winners and finalists will gain additional media coverage for the summer season.”
Copies of the winning books and of all of HBKU Press’s catalog of works can be found on Amazon, Kindle and in bookstores across Qatar.