Raja'a Alem

Raja'a Alem (; born in 1956) is a Saudi Arabian novelist from Mecca/Hejaz. She studied English Literature at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah in 1980. She began her writing career on the "Letters and Ideas" page in Al-Riyadh newspaper, as well as in the newspaper's weekly supplement. She is credited with documenting the Meccan/Hejazi environment in her novels. Her novels are distinguished by a symbolic Sufi/Gnostic narrative with broad cosmic visions. Some of her works have been translated into English and Spanish.

Life Alem was born in Mecca. She received her BA in English Literature and works as a tutor for the Center for Training Kindergarten Teachers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. She is an active writer of prose and her style, a blend of modern style with traditional themes, is unique among Saudi authors. Alem has published several plays, three novels, and a collection of short stories, Nahr al-Hayawan (The Animal River, 1994). She is the recipient of several prestigious international prizes.

Her short story "One Thousand Braids and a Governess" has been translated into English and published in Voices of Change: short stories by Saudi Arabian women writers. Her birth in Mecca and her family background is highly influential to her work and outlook. She has reflected on her relationship with the now overhauled and renovated city of Mecca, saying: I belong to a stream of thinking rather than a piece of land, to a current that runs everywhere. My country is all over the globe...Now, in Mecca, I felt I belonged, not to the ceremonies performed by thousands of bodies but to a spirit that was reaching out to me alone. I somehow felt that I was seeing beyond things, past the glare of the full moon, feeling the elation you experience when you reach the power behind things. Or maybe it was about the way the moonlight mingled with the longings of the pilgrims.

Among her significant works are the books Khatam, Sayidi Wehadana, Masra Ya Rageeb, Hubba, The Silk Road, and other novels. She divides her time between Jeddah and Paris.

2011 International Prize for Arabic Fiction Alem was joint winner of the 2011 International Prize for Arabic Fiction for her novel The Doves' Necklace. This renowned prize is administered by the Booker Prize Foundation in London, and is funded by Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi (DCT). She shared the prize with the Moroccan writer Mohammed Achaari.

Works

ثقوب في الظهر (Thouqoub fi el-dahr) Beyrouth: Dar al Adab, 2006. ستر (Sitr) Beyrouth : Dar al Adab, 2006. الرقص على سن الشوكة (Al-raqs ala sinn al-shouka) Beyrouth: Dar al Adab, 2006. طريق الحرير (Tariq al-harir) Beyrouth : Dar al Adab, 2006. خاتم (Khatim) Beyrouth : Dar al-bayda, 2006.

Venice Biennale In 2011, Alem represented Saudi Arabia with her sister, the artist Shadia Alem at the Venice Biennale. This was the first time that Saudi Arabia had entered the festival. Their work was entitled The Black Arch and referenced travel narratives, Hajj and the representation of women.