(1973 - ...)
Wajdi Al-Ahdal was born in the city of Hodeida where he studied primary and middle school in the city of Bajel but he studied high school in the city of Sana’a. Then he joined the Faculty of Arts and obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Arts - Geography Department in 1996.
He was appointed as an employee of the General Book Authority in 2000, then worked as director of the House of Culture in the city of Sana’a, then director of training and capacity building department at the Ministry of Culture. Later, he was hired as the managing editor of Al-Thaqafia magazine, then a member of the General Secretariat of the Yemeni Writers Union.
Among his books:
1. Zahrat Al-Aber, a collection of short stories, issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, Sana’a, 1997. Second Edition, Anaween House, Cairo, 2021.
2. The rhetoric of Al-Zaman Al-Maqmaq, a collection of short stories, issued by the General Book Authority, Sana'a, 1998.
3. The image of the Batal, a collection of short stories, published by Azmina House, Amman, in 1998.
4. A war that no one knew had happened, a collection of stories, issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, 2001.
5. Mountain Boats, published by Dar Al Rayes, 2002, 2nd Edition.
6. A Donkey Among the Songs, published by Dar Riad Al Rayes, Beirut, 2004, second edition, Arab Horizons Series, The General Authority for Cultural Palaces, Cairo 2011.
7. The Enchanted Song, a narrative film script, Obadi Center Sana'a, 2006.
8. Falling from the balcony of the world, a play issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, Sana'a, 2007.
9. The Karantina Philosopher, a novel, issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, 2007.
10. A country without a sky, a novel, issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, 2008, the second edition, Dar Al-Tanweer, Beirut, 2012, the third edition, Dar Naqsh, Sana'a 2020.
11. The Poet, a short film script, issued by the Obadi Center for Studies and Publishing, 2012.
12. People of Restaurants Street, Stories, Arwaq Institution for Translation, Studies and Publishing, Cairo 2017.
13. Wadi Al-Dujouj, Stories, General Secretariat of the State Prize for Youth, Sana'a, 2017.
14. The Land of Happy Conspiracies, Dar Hachette Antoine-Nofal, Beirut, 2018.
15. Mobilization, a collection of short stories, Dar Hachette Antoine-Nofal, Beirut, 2020.
16. Narrative works, 6 short story collections, Anaween House, Cairo, 2021.
17. Take your hand out of your pocket and write a script, Anaween House, Cairo 2021.
18. Literary glossaries, articles, Sharjah Department of Culture, Sharjah, 2021.
Awards:
1. Al-Afif Cultural Award in the field of the short story, 1997.
2. First place in theatrical composition in the ninth Arab Youth Festival in Alexandria 1998 for the play "The Colonel's Wedding".
3. The President of the Republic Youth Award for the Short Story 1999.
4. His novel The Philosopher of the Karantina was longlisted in the 2007 Booker Prize for Arabic Fiction in its first session.
5. He was chosen among the 39 best Arab writers under the age of forty in the Beirut 39 project, which was organized by the High Festival of British Literature 2009.
6. His novel, The Land of Happy Conspiracies, was longlisted for the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, the Literature Branch, in its thirteenth session, 2018-2019.
Translations:
1. The Italian translation of his novel “A Donkey Among the Songs” was published by Poiessis in Bari, translated by the Italian Arabist Francesco de Angelos, May 2010.
2. The French translation of his novel “Mountain Boats” was published by the Bachari Publishing House in Paris, with its Arabized translation (Sarah Rulfo), January, 2011.
3. The English translation of his novel “A Country Without a Sky” was issued by Garnet Publishing House in London, translated by: Dr. (William Mapnard Hutchins), September 2012.
4. The Russian magazine (Chotky) published the full Russian translation of the novel "A Country Without a Sky", translated by: (Avsevolod Popov), October 2011.
5. Ametis Publishing House in Ankara issued the Turkish translation of the novel "A Country Without a Sky", translated by: Dr. Youssef Koshali and Susu Yunsu, 2020.
Stations
1. The English version of "A Country Without a Sky" was selected among the top 100 must-read mystery and crime novels around the world.
2. Professor William Hitchens won the 2013 Saif Ghobash-Banipal Prize for Translation, for his translation of “A Country Without a Sky” into English.
3. The novel "A Country Without a Sky" was turned into a movie entitled "Sama", a script and directed by Ammar Al-Rabsi, starring Mustafa Safrany and Nassima Loail, Algeria, 2014.
Sources:
• Biography of Wajdi Al-Ahdal.
