Emirati Author Reem Alkamali Shortlisted for BRICS Literature Award

Reem Alkamali, an Emirati writer, journalist, and cultural researcher, has been shortlisted for the inaugural BRICS Literature Award alongside nine other authors. Her most recent novel, Rose's Diaries (2021), takes places in the 1960s before the founding of the United Arab Emirates, and was the first Emirati novel to be nominated for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction. Alkamali has also been the recipient of the Al Owais Prize for her 2013 novel, Sultanate of Hormuz, and the Sharjah Prize for her 2018 novel, Dalma’s Statue. The BRICS Literature Award, which was established in November 2024, aims to support authors whose works reflect the traditions and cultural diversity of its eleven participating countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Iran. It also promotes translation and publishing to encourage cross-cultural exchange between the countries of the BRICS group, an informal coalition of emerging economies that seeks to strengthen the economic and diplomatic coordination of its members. The winner will be announced in Moscow on November 27th, 2025.