Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation gains exclusive rights to translate Noble Laureate Doris Lessing's books

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The Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation today announced it has acquired exclusive rights for translating three books of Doris Lessing, acclaimed British novelist and winner of the 2007 Noble Prize for Literature, following its successful translation of ‘Memoirs of a Survivor'.

The Foundation will finance the translation, printing and publishing of Lessing's books in collaboration with Arab Scientific Publishers in Beirut, as part its relentless efforts to make available rich literary classics to the avid Arabic reader.

Collaborating with leading translators in the Arab world, the Foundation will release the translated versions of Lessing's The Sweetest Dream, The Grandmothers, and The Cleft by the end of this year.

During the Foundation's participation at the 2008 London Book Fair, a delegation led by Yasser Hareb, Deputy Director for Culture, held discussions with the renowned novelist at her residence in London.

Yasser Hareb said: "The Foundation is privileged to have acquired exclusive rights for translating bestsellers in literature, which constitutes 25 per cent of the overall target of the Tarjem translation initiative, the rest being allocated to books in business, management, science and literature.

"We chose the brilliant fables of Doris Lessing for her inimitable style and accurate depiction of human emotions, based on her agility to move between realism and symbolism. We are confident that Arab readers will enjoy their in-depth journey into her mind."

As the oldest person ever to win the Nobel award for literature, Lessing was born in Iran in 1919, where her father was an officer in the British Army. She became the 11^th woman to win Noble Prize of Literature and is considered as one of the leading literary figures of the second half of the 20th century.

The Tarjem programme was launched earlier this year by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, aiming to enrich the Arabic library through the translation of 1,000 books within three years.

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About Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation has been launched as a personal initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Announced by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East 2007 in the Dead Sea, Jordan with an endowment of US $10 billion, the Foundation targets to develop the knowledge and human capabilities of the Arab world and introduce a future generation of thought leaders in the region. It aims to achieve its strategic objectives through a wide array of pioneering projects and programs in three main strategic areas: knowledge and education, culture, and entrepreneurship.

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