Abu Dhabi seems to be a happening place right now. I mentioned their recent Gourmet Abu Dhabi Food Festival.
They present the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair from March 2 to March 7, 2010.
I noted that they had a panel today (March 4) looking at Comics and Graphic Novels in Arab World (Event Blog).
Chip Rossetti reports in his blog piece that panelists included Hosni Mojahed "spoke about his experiences making the switch from children’s magazines to animated television series" as well as "Qais Sedki, the UAE-based Manga publisher who last night won the Sheikh Zayed Book Award for children’s literature for his first Manga title, Gold Ring." Third on the panel was Magdy El-Shafee, the author and illustrator of Metro, the first graphic novel for adults published in Egypt" who speculated at today’s panel that the political corruption is what “enraged some of the authorities” and got the book confiscated (although it is available here at the Fair.)"
In a different area, the Antiquarian Book Fair should bring a steady stream of collectors and history buffs alike.
Closer to our regular topics, the fair does not neglect food and cookbooks. Its Show Kitchen features a number of chefs including Indian-Icelandic Yesmine Olsson which is described as a combination nutritionist, dancer and celebrity chef, interesting blend.
She authored 2 books on Asian Food, Tempting and Tasting 1 and 2.