Award winning Omani author Jokha Al Harthi returns home

Muscat: Award winning Omani author Jokha Al Harthi has returned home to Oman, where she was greeted by none other than Dr Abdulmonim bin Hamed Al Hassani, Oman's Minister of Information.

Jokha, who recently won the 2019 Man Booker International Prize for her book, Celestial Bodies, also had posters of her put up at Muscat International Airport, where her friends and family were waiting to receive her.

On arrival back home, Jokha was presented with an award by the Minister of Information, and a special cake to commemorate her success was cut in her honour.

Jokha's book was selected as the winner of the 2019 Man Booker International Prize from among 108 different titles, and she becomes the first author from the Middle East to win it.

In the wake of her success, bookstores in Oman have been quick to order Celestial Bodies, anticipating a rapid increase in demand by both Omani and expat readers in the nation.