KUWAIT: Ali Al-Masoudi, Head of the Suad Al-Sabah Publishing House, said that they have received an impressive response for their participation in the publishing exhibitions held in Istanbul and Barcelona. "We are quite keen to continue to reach more readers in Kuwait and abroad with our books and this has been a priority for us, for nearly half a century."

On the exhibition held in Istanbul, Al-Masoudi said that after the book exhibition which was recently held in Riyadh, he considers the exhibition in Istanbul, as the most important annual book exhibition to be held outside the Arab world.

"Our section at the exhibition was popular and well-received, which gives us the assurance that we are on the right path and we take pride in showcasing our creative published work. These range from contemporary literature works to documents on history, heritage and the sciences. We also display books translated from other countries and languages including the Turkish language which was appreciated by many of the Arab tourists in Turkey as well as the residents who were interested in the Arabic language," he said.

Ali Al-Masoudi

Al-Masoudi also said that the goals of the publishing house align well with the goals of the exhibition in Istanbul, which functions as a non-profit exhibition aimed at reviving the Arabic language and is also looking at ways to document the historical and literary connection between the Arabs and the Turks. He added that this was also the goal of the Suad Publishing House, as it aims to enrich the creativity of the Arabic language and bridge the gap between the Arab culture and other cultures.

"Our publishing house's participation in the exhibition comes at a time when we are displaying translated works of Suad Al-Sabah's works from Arabic to the Turkish language called 'And flowers know anger', which was published a few days ago and was quite popular among the Turks and Arabs as well."

He also added that the exhibition was a great opportunity for publishers in the region, as it saw the participation of more than 30 countries, with around 100 events being held in the form of lectures, book signing sessions and other events.

Meanwhile, speaking with regards to the publishing house's participation at the book exhibition held in Barcelona, Al-Masoudi said that he hoped that the exhibition would serve as a good opportunity to showcase the Arabic and Islamic heritage and also be a meeting point for many cultures.

He also said that Dr Suad Al-Sabah hoped that the participation of the publishing house in exhibitions held at home, in the region and abroad would help to highlight the publishing house's initiatives globally. "The books displayed at the exhibition are not just in Arabic, but also include many Arabic books translated to around 20 different languages from several categories," Al-Masoudi added.

He also said that Dr Suad Al-Sabah's ambitions were as per the instructions of her late husband Sheikh Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, to support Arabic creativity in the Arab world, especially among the younger generations and to reward their creative talents.

Al-Masoudi said that, "Our publishing house aims to achieve the aspirations of Dr Suad Al-Sabah, in showcasing Arabic culture in the region and abroad and in giving a prominent position for Kuwait in all the international cultural events that we participate in."