The novel "The Westernization of the Unbeliever" by Omani author Zahran Al Qasimi, 49, won the 16th International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) in an online ceremony on Sunday evening.

A total of 124 novels were nominated for the prize, 16 of which were longlisted in January and only 6 shortlisted on March <>.

Each novel shortlisted received $10,50, while the winning novel received $<>,<> in addition to its English translation.

The events of "Westernization of the Wilder" – which vary between the real, the historical and the mythical – take place in an Omani village, and tell the story of Salem bin Abdullah, one of the water trackers, who is used by villages in their search for groundwater sources.

The author (who has 4 novels plus 10 poetry collections) asks: "What if this substance that gives life to beings is also a source of their death through their scarcity or flooding?"

The award's website, which is sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre of the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, said that "The Westernization of the Wasteland" is a watercolor novel that restores to the narrator his first job, which is to water people and satisfy their thirst.

Aflaj Memory

Within the events of the novel, the villages seek the help of Salem bin Abdullah, and the life of the wasteland since birth is linked to water, as his mother died by drowning, and his father was buried under the channel of one of the aflaj where the roof collapsed on him, and ends up as a prisoner in another channel to remain there resisting to survive.

Aflaj is an agricultural system for irrigating orchards, closely linked to rural life in Oman, and around which tales and legends revolved.

Some critics described the novel as a lived and unforgettable story, praising the novelist's language drawn from his local environment and his ability to immortalize local memory brilliantly.

Longlisted novels for the 2023 International Prize for Arabic Fiction (Al Jazeera)

The president of the jury, Moroccan writer and novelist Mohamed Ash'ari, said during a ceremony held on Sunday to announce the prize that the novel "paid attention to a new topic in modern fiction writing, which is the subject of water in relation to the natural environment and human life in difficult areas."

"The writer presented us with this theme through a constant synergy between reality and myth, and he does so by building a tight narrative and transparent poetic language, and by carving exciting characters who occupy an essential role in people's lives, while at the same time arousing their aversion and fear," he added.

"The writer was able to bring us closer to a theater that is unusual for the novel circulating in the Arab world, which is the theater of valleys and aflaj in Amman, and the impact of natural elements on man's relationship with his surroundings and culture," he said.

After his novel was declared the winner, Al Qasimi, the first Omani novelist to win the prize, appeared moved and said he did not expect to win, adding, "I share my win with my shortlisted colleagues" because "their novels are also very powerful."