Arabia Books, an imprint of Haus Publishing a London-based independent publishing house, was established five years ago with the aim of bringing the best fiction published in the Arab world to a British readership. We're pleased to be working with Arabia Books to celebrate their fifth anniversary by offering sets of the thirty books they have published since 2008 to every library service in the country.

Arabia Books successes

Over the past five years, Arabia Books has published thirty titles by internationally renowned authors such as Rafik Schami, Hoda Barakat, Radwa Ashour, Rashid Boudjedra, Habib Selmi and Samar Yazbek, the winner of the 2012 PEN/Pinter Author of Courage Award. Additionally, titles from the Arabia Books list have been shortlisted for or won the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, the Man Asian Literary Prize, the Prix du Roman Arabe, and the Cairo International Book Fair Prize.

In 2011 Arabia Books also launched Swallow Editions, a not-for-profit enterprise that aims to promote unpublished authors from the Arab world - the voices of the Arab Spring - in books which are, in the words of Swallow's founder Rafik Schami, 'free from oil, tedium and dictatorship.'

Raising awareness of Arab literature in libraries

To raise awareness of Arab culture and literature in Britain, and to support public libraries in an age of austerity, Arabia Books are donating sets of all of their published titles to libraries around the country. Library services can sign up to receive books through our Reading Partners scheme, which creates successful and exciting events and activities for readers. The initiative will be launched on Sunday 14th April, in advance of the 2013 London Book Fair.