Mohammed Bin Rashid Library Marks Literary Milestone with Debut of Emirati Author’s Cross-Cultural Memoir

A conversation between worlds: the Library hosts the launch of Jamal Al Shehhi's meditative exploration of identity, belonging and the transformative power of stepping beyond one's origins.

Within the cultivated spaces of Mohammed Bin Rashid Library, a gathering of cultural stewards and literary minds convened to mark the publication of Here, Wisconsin: A Gulf Arab Between Two Worlds, an introspective work by Emirati author Jamal Al Shehhi. The session, moderated by Dr. Sulaiman Al Hattlan, became a meditation on the contours of identity itself, examining the profound shifts that occur when one inhabits a space between two distinct worlds.

The book traces a familiar yet deeply personal journey: the experience of studying and living far from home, of navigating the subtle textures of a foreign culture whilst carrying the weight of memory and roots. Wisconsin, in Shehhi’s telling, becomes not merely a place on a map but rather a landscape of transformation and self-discovery, while the UAE emerges as the anchoring force of belonging and identity. What emerges from this dialogue between geography and self is a meditation on nostalgia, on how time reshapes our understanding of our own experiences, and on the profound ways that exposure to other cultures illuminates who we truly are.

The discussion explored with nuance the cultural and social differences that separate Arab and Western societies, and the manner in which genuine engagement with the everyday rhythms of another place can quietly dismantle preconceived notions and foster mutual understanding. This reflects a broader tradition within Arab letters, as noted by Mohammed Ahmed Al Murr, Chairman of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Library Foundation, who situated the book within a lineage of Arab writers engaging with Western experience and the civilisational questions that such encounters inevitably raise.

The event also illuminated the delicate relationship between writing and memory, and how the perspective afforded by time allows writers to comprehend their own lived experiences with fresh clarity. Speakers including Dr. Jamal Sanad Al Suwaidi, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research, Dr. Mohammed Salem AlMazrooei, Board Member at the Library Foundation, and prominent Emirati author Abdul Ghaffar Hussein, engaged thoughtfully with these themes.

What it means for Abu Dhabi

The session underscores Mohammed Bin Rashid Library’s evolving role as a cultural anchor within the Emirates, offering platforms not merely for the consumption of literature but for the interrogation of lived experience through the written word. By championing Emirati authors and their voices, the institution strengthens the presence of books within the cultural landscape and reinforces Abu Dhabi’s commitment to intellectual exchange.

More broadly, the launch celebrates the sophistication of Emirati intellectual life and the nation’s confidence in exploring complex themes of identity, belonging and cross-cultural understanding. It signals a cultural maturity in which contemporary writers may articulate nuanced personal narratives whilst contributing to deeper conversations about what it means to be rooted in one place whilst shaped by experience in another.

Source: WAM