Hundreds of books on offer at AUS Arabic Book Exhibition

that commenced today, October 17, at the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at American University of Sharjah (AUS).

Works ranged from those focusing on Islamic issues to others on Arabic and world literature. Many of the books were translated titles by renowned international authors such as Dan Brown, whose best-seller The Da Vinci Code was on offer in Arabic. The exhibition will run through October 21.

The exhibition was inaugurated by Salem Yousef Al Qaseer, Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs. The opening ceremony was also attended by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdullah Al Thani, Director-General of the Office of the President of AUS, along with Dr. Mark Edward Rush, Dean of CAS; Dr. Rounak Husni, Head of the Department of Arabic and Translation Studies; Dr. Ghada Jayyusi Lehn, Assistant Prof, Arabic and Translation Studies and representative of the Society for Protection of Arabic Language; Dr. Ali Darwish, Assistant Professor of Arabic and Translation Studies, senior faculty members, students and members of the media.

I think this is a great opportunity for both students as well as the campus community to partake of the wide variety of Arabic texts on offer. These sorts of exhibitions are a regular feature of our multicultural campus life and play an important part in promoting Arabic language and literature," said Al Qaseer. The exhibition, which is organized by the Office of Public Affairs and the Society for Protection of Arabic Language in cooperation with the AUS Department of Arabic and Translation Studies, aims to promote reading in Arabic. Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Rush said, "You cannot define a culture unless it has a literature and a language. Here is a manifestation of Arabic literature and language.

This exhibition aims to bring awareness by exposing students to books and titles that discuss Islamic and social issues," said Muhammad Mustafa, the organizer of the event.