For the first time in its 12-year history, the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival has expanded the scope of its cultural activities beyond the main venue at Expo Centre Sharjah, to facilitate residents in other emirates and the eastern coast cities of Sharjah gain access to some of the wholesome and varied selection of programmes curated for the 2021 edition.

The 11-day cultural extravaganza, will also enable a wider audience to experience the very best of literary and cultural discussions as an elite group of writers, artists, and other experts will participate in on-ground and virtual sessions from May 19 – 29.

Held under the theme, ‘For Your Imagination’, the festival’s main activities will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah with a select choice of programming now offered in the emirates of Dubai, Fujairah, and Ras Al Khaimah, in addition to the cities of Kalba and Dibba Al Hisn on the eastern coast of Sharjah.

From meetings with the authors to stimulating discussions and debates touching upon several genres of literature, the 2021 edition of SCRF will address a variety of themes that nurture the imagination and inspire creativity amongst children and youth of all ages.

Visitors at Expo Centre Sharjah can look forward to learning from Egyptian artist Ahmed Ameen on effective ways to develop and enhance comic writing skills and create distinguished content for children. DinaraMirtalipova, a self-taught illustrator and designer from Uzbekistan, and EltayebAdib, will helm a discussion on ‘The Power of Folklore’ to offer insights into how this creative field inspires and influences writing and the arts.

In a session titled, ‘Children’s Book and New Challenges’, Dr. Elyazia Khalifa, the founder of Al Falak for Translation and Publishing, and Emirati writer Fatima Al Mazrouei, will discuss the many challenges facing the production and circulation of children’s books. The session, ‘Inspirational Books’, will see Jordanian author Fida Al Zamr and Pakistan’s Zenubia Arsalan lead a discussion on how to develop content for inspirational and stimulating books that promotes thinking, learning, and creativity in children.

Exciting mix of cultural discussions at Dibba Al Hisn and Kalba

As SCRF 2021 expands its reach to the eastern coast of the emirate this year, residents and visitors at Dibba Al Hisn can meet with author Dr. Hussein Ali Haref for a spirited and lively open discussion on a broad range of topics, while in Kalba, students and children can interact with authors Kevin Sherry and DinaraMirtalipova in separate sessions.

Vibrant mix of thought-provoking sessions in Dubai, Fujairah, and Ras Al Khaimah

Al Safa Art & Design Library in Dubai will host four interactive SCRF sessions for the first time this year. In a discussion on ‘Bringing Stories to Life’, Claudia Rueda and EltayebAdib will explore the intriguing role of unique characters in enabling authors to tell their stories.

Award-winning illustrator Matt Lamothe and Emirati Aysha Al Hemrani will demystify the process of creating digital illustrations in children’s books in the session titled ‘Digital Illustrations’ while in ‘Stories and Pictures’, authors Claudia Rueda and Saudi Arabia’s Faraj Al Dhufairi, will shed light on the special skills required for writing picture books, and elaborate on the creative process and production of these books.

Greenfeet Guides founder and author Ambika Anand Prokop and Emirati novelist Fatima Al Mazrouei will explore the meaningful ways in which writing introduces children to foreign culture in a session titled, ‘Cultural Sustainability’, and delve into how books expand the cultural and environmental consciousness of children.

in Fujairah, Jordanian author Fida Al Zamr and South Africa’s well-known changemaker and author Swaady Martin, will hold separate discussions with young students to offer insights on the writing process, and engage in free-flowing conversations on relevant topics of interest.

The emirate of Ras Al Khaimah will host two meet-the-author sessions for students featuring EltayebAdiband Saudi Arabia’s Faraj Al Dhufairi.