A children’s book has been launched in Qatar.

The Qatar National Library, (QNL) in collaboration with Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Ltd (Oxy Qatar) last week welcomed more than 150 children and their families to launch of The Blue Jackal book.

Appealing to children, the story of The Blue Jackal and the 17 other fables written by Qatar-based author Francis Gillespie have been inspired by the rich cultural heritage from all over the Muslim world.

The book launch featured a variety of activities including recitals of selected stories from the book, colouring activities and distributing free autographed copies of the book to the participants.

The event was held at Hamad bin Khalifa University Student Center at Education City. It was organised to promote local culture among Qatar’s youth, encouraging them to read and share knowledge in order to preserve Qatar’s heritage for future generations.

Dr Claudia Lux, Project Director of QNL, said: “Participants were extremely impressed with our fun-filled book launch. Many also expressed the joy of bringing young people and adults together through the cultural works. As a result of this positive response, QNL is certainly planning to host similar educational and entertaining events in the future.”

Stephen Kelly, president and general manager of Oxy Qatar, said: “We are very pleased to collaborate with Qatar National Library in organising this event and the launching of The Blue Jackal and Other Tales from Islamic Lands.

Oxy dedicated the book to the children of Qatar.

“We hope the re-told fables and original illustrations in The Blue Jackal and Other Tales From Islamic Lands will encourage reading and learning. All of us at Oxy believe this beautiful book will be enjoyable and inspiring to everyone who reads it,” he said.

Gillespie, the author of the book, said: “I would like to express my appreciation to Oxy Qatar for sponsoring this publication and to both Oxy and Qatar National Library for their efforts in planning and organising the event. I am delighted to see so many children and their families
present.”

Gillespie has worked in Qatar as a teacher, environmental consultant and freelance journalist. She began authoring books about Qatar in 2000. In recent years, she concentrated on publications for young readers about Qatar and the Arabian Gulf including Qatar Nature Explorer - a series of six colourful hardback books about Qatar. She is also the author of the best-selling book Discovering Qatar, which has been re-printed three times since its launch in 2006.

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QNE

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