Lit & Found: Winners of Inaugural Barjeel Mudun Short Story Prize

Rusted Radishes and the Barjeel Art Foundation have announced the winners of the Mudun Short Story Prize, an international competition that invited writers to “showcase, in fiction, a city in the Arab world they know intimately.”

The inaugural Barjeel Mudun Prize recognized five short stories: three in English and two in Arabic, focused on Sharjah, Alexandria, Kuwait City, Sana’a, and Rabat.

The winning story in English is “Too Much Freedom” by Bhoomika Ghaghada, an independent researcher who grew up in the UAE, while the two runners-up are “Baba and the Sea” by Soraya Morayef and “The Runner” by Barrak Alzaid.

The winning story in Arabic is “مكّي” by acclaimed Yemeni writer Wajdi al-Ahdal, and the runner-up is “يوم آخر في الرباط” by award-winning Moroccan writer Rashid Ben Addi.

All stories are available to read on the Rusted Radishes website, with illustrations by Sarah Al Adayleh.