The 52nd edition of the Cairo International Book Fair concluded its activities last Thursday, having received over 1 million visitors.
The event achieved a world record as the first during the pandemic to be attended by such a huge number.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture, and managed by the General Egyptian Book Organisation (GEBO), the fair took place between 30 June and 15 July at the Egyptian International Exhibition Centre (EIEC) in New Cairo.
In order to ensure the safety of visitors and exhibitors, strict precautionary measures were enforced throughout the event, in line with the Egyptian Government’s efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
A large ceremony to honour the winners of the 52nd Cairo International Book Fair (CIBF) Award was also held as part of the fair’s programme. The winners were also featured in a panel discussion that highlighted their literary and cultural achievements.
The best-selling books were also announced for this year’s edition. Regarding Cultural Development Fund and General Authority of Cultural Palaces releases, the best-selling books included publications such as: Oqadem Lak; Al Kitab Al Awal; the Al Haweya series; the Al Zakhaer series; and Rawaee’ Al Masrah El Aalami.
Meanwhile, the best-selling books at the National Center for Translation, were: Al Yahood Fi El Imbratoreya El Othmaneya; Tareekh El Arab Wi Al Aalam; Tareekh Oroba Fi El Asr El Hadeth; Herodot Yathadath Aan Masr; Hikayat Min Shakespeare; and Tareekh Al Seraa Bain El Elm Wa Al Lahoot Fi Al Masiheya.
The best-selling books from the Bibliotheca Alexandrina were: Kimyaa’ Al Saada; Khodair Al Boursaidi; Moagam Al Mostalahat Al Athareya; Tagded El Khetab Al Deny; Al Logha Al Masreya Al Qadema; Al Younaneyen Wa Benaa’ Masr Al Haditha; and Antoine Barthelemy Clot.
Moreover there were many best-selling books from private publishing houses, such as the Al Shorouk Publishing House which boasted 13 best-selling books, including: Loukandet Beir Al Wataweet by Ahmed Morad; Hikayet Farah by Ezzedine Choukri Fishere; Be Refqet Aaisha, Waqee’ Arabiya, and Tabib Aryaf by Mohamed Al Mansy Qandel; Tholatheyet Ghernata by Radwa Ashour; Awlad Haretna by Naguib Mahfouz; 40 by Ahmed El Shoukir; Zakar Sharqy Monqared by Dr Mohamed Taha; Hazr Nashr by Haitham Dabour; Yahood Misr Fi Al Qarn El 20 by Mohamed Abo Al Ghar; Utopia by Ahmed Khaled Tawfiq; and Banat El Basha by Noura Nagui.
Meanwhile, the best-selling books from Al Karma Publishers were: Regal Marg Dabiq and Hikayat Min Daftar El Watan by Salah Eissa; El Ahood by Margret Atwod; Al Mawloda by Nadia Kamel; Al Asaf Wa Al Raihan by Mohamed Salmawi; Habiba and Kont Sabeyan Fi El Sabeinat by Mahmoud Abdel Shakour; Abnaa Houra by Abdel Rahim Kamal; El Hograt by Sherin Samy; Zee’b Wahid by Ibrahim Ahmed Eissa; Baad Ma Yenamo El Eyal by Omar Taher; Kol El Shohor Youlio by Ibrahim Eissa; and Ozmaa Fi Tofolthom by Mohamed Al Mansi Qandel.
The Al Kotob Khan publishing house reported that its best-selling books were: Adel Essmat’s Ganazet Al Sayeda Al Baidaa, Al Wassaya, and Makhawef Nihayet El Omr; Yasser Abdel Latif’s Mosem Al Awqat Al Aalya; Iman Mirsal’s Fi Athar Enayat Al Zayat; Ahmed El Shafie’s Lemaza La Tazraa’ Shagara; and Mohamed Ismail’s Ma Hadath Fi Shengen, Fernando Pessoa..Madhosh Abdan, and Morambi.
The list of best-selling books also included: Awraq Shamoun Al Masry by Osama Abdel Raouf; Khawla Hamdy’s Ghorbet El Yasmin and Yasmin Al Awda; in addition to several releases by Ahmed Khaled Tawfiq, Nabil Farouk, and Youssef Zidan.
