Le autorità saudite, per la precisione il portavoce del ministero della cultura, si sono affrettate a smentire che il libro di Abdo Khal, che aveva appena vinto il prestigioso Arab Booker Price, fosse stato tolto dagli scaffali della fiera del libro di Riyadh. Una scomparsa di poche ore, si era detto, e non dovuta alla censura ma a un controllo…
Comunque, Abdo Khal, scrittore che definiremmo da atmosfera noir, è ormai troppo importante per toglierlo dagli scaffali.
Khal had said on an earlier occasion that his books were not sold in Saudi Arabia because they address taboos in the Arab world. “We’re more than just writers. We’re also activists fighting for change,” said Khal, who has not made any money and continues to struggle to get his novels published.
Other authors who have seen their titles banned from the book fair in past years include Turki Al-Hamad, Mahmoud Trawri and Leila Al-Jihani. Even Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi — who is a playwright and poet — saw two of his works banned, “Freedom’s Apartment” and “The Insane Asylum.”