In a literary evening that defied Cairo’s summer heat with breezes of creativity, Bayt Al-Hekma Publishing House hosted a seminar on Wednesday evening, July 30, 2025, to discuss the new young adult novel My Father, the Mapmaker by author Ashraf Aboul-Yazid. The event was moderated and critically explored by Dr. Mohamed Maher Bassiouni, a renowned literary critic.
This seminar served as a remarkable gathering of authors and artists who came together to engage with this new narrative work. Among the participants were Fouad Morsi, short story writer, novelist, researcher, and Editor-in-Chief of Al-Qissa magazine; Mohamed Okasha, visual artist, poet, and writer; Tariq Abdel Wahab Jado, short story writer, novelist, and critic; and Walaa Khalifa, the visual artist and illustrator of the novel, whose artwork provided a visual dimension complementing the narrative imagination.
Additionally, two Iraqi writers shared their reflections during the seminar: Abdel Monem Al-Eisawi, poet, and Zuhair Al-Badri, poet, traveler, and publisher.
The event was attended by numerous notable figures, including television director and writer Fatma Al-Zahraa Hassan; Ali Qotb, this year’s recipient of the State Incentive Award in Literary Criticism for his remarkable and genre-defining book Singing and Music in the Literature of Naguib Mahfouz; poet and publisher Magdy Aboul-Kheir; esteemed translator Ahmed Gamal Abu Al-Lail; distinguished poet Tariq Hashem; and acclaimed short story writer and novelist Dr. Hatem Radwan, along with several friends of the author and illustrator.
The novel’s resonance extended across the Arab world. As part of the seminar, audio and video testimonies from nine distinguished Arab writers and creatives were presented, expressing their views on this unique literary work. These included:
- Dr. Hanan Awwad, poet, researcher, and President of PEN Club Jerusalem (Palestine)
- Dr. Eman Baqai, academic specializing in children’s and young adult literature (Lebanon)
- Basma Al-Khatib, novelist and short story writer (Lebanon)
- Hani Nadeem, poet, media personality, writer, and traveler (Syria)
- Nuha Swaid, writer and film critic (Syria)
- Adel Khuzam, poet and short story writer (UAE)
- Khaled Suleiman, Egyptian short story writer and critic residing in Tunisia
- Dr. Hassan Hummeida, children’s literature author (Sudan–Germany)
- Tariq Al-Amrawi, children’s literature writer and critic (Tunisia)
The video recordings were edited by Huda Ashraf, a student at the Faculty of Archaeology, Cairo University, while Fadwa Ashraf documented the event and the interview conducted by the publishing house before the seminar began.
Video Testimonies:
- Dr. Hanan Awad (7 mins): https://youtu.be/zZXqw__dgus?si=NSMv5TW13wQ7E5z-
- Dr. Eman Baqai (7 mins): https://youtu.be/9MIHAjonPCY
- Tariq Al-Amrawi (12 mins): https://youtu.be/qyHOJ6ejXSo
- Khaled Suleiman (10 mins): https://youtu.be/OOooumeMPFw
- Nuha Swaid (12 mins): https://youtu.be/YEnckSt7RqY
- Hani Nadeem: https://youtu.be/PE0XbfeWZxY
- Adel Khuzam (4 mins): https://youtu.be/xhDhEMc8jZ4
- Dr. Hassan Hummeida (3 mins): https://youtu.be/CUPDyXhozZg
- Basma Al-Khatib (5 mins): https://youtu.be/XEzy3lBsXsQ
It is worth mentioning that My Father, the Mapmaker was published earlier this year during the 2025 Cairo International Book Fair. The novel, targeting young adult readers, weaves a philosophical and emotional journey that revives imagination and knowledge through a tight narrative structure. It explores the deep ties between geography and identity, fatherhood and writing, maps and dreams.
