The Lebanese Cultural Forum in France announced the Arab Creativity award to Saudi novelist Rajaa Alem, Wednesday. The forum's head Nabil Shagra said Alem was selected unanimously for the prize named after the famed critic Khaleda Sa'id, Al-Watan reported. Alem said she was honored to receive the award. “Lebanon may be a small country but not so small intellectually,” she said. She said Lebanon was the heart of publishing in the Arab world. Despite the calamities that befell on it, Lebanon remains loyal to culture and has produced icons of culture for the world. “It has revived cultures struggling to survive and maintain a presence,” Alem said. “Culture and intellectuals suffer many setbacks. This initiative of awarding a prize in the name of a famed critic like Khaleda Said is very much needed in the Arab world.” Rajaa is currently penning a novel that will be published in Arabic and English. The theme of the novel is Makkah Al-Mukarramah. “To me, Makkah is the center of a magical and a creative movement. I am looking to rekindle it which has now slipped into decadence... the Makkah my mother and my grandmother knew”, she said. Rajaa Alem is the author of several novels, notably “Khatem” and “Sidi Wahdanah”. __
