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Sheikh Mohammed's 'My Story' flies off shelves

Dubai - It marked Sheikh Mohammed's 50th year in public service.

The English translation of what was dubbed the 'incomplete autobiography' of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is making book lovers swarm retail outlets across the country.
Also read: Sheikh Mohammed's two grand dreams for Dubai
My Story, which comprises 50 anecdotes in 50 chapters, was first published in January as Qissati in Arabic. It marked Sheikh Mohammed's 50th year in public service, which began in 1968 with his appointment as Dubai's Minister of Defence. The book's English version, which costs Dh89, hit stands across the UAE on February 11 - and even as its sales enter the second week, its demand continues to soar, Dubai retailers said.

"It has been the best-selling book in our store since we launched the English version last Monday," said Abbas Terichy, a customer service executive at Kinokuniya Dubai, one of the region's largest bookstores.

"We have been selling 200 to 300 copies of the book daily on average since it was first launched in Arabic, and the English version has been much sought-after, too, because of the language's wide following here in the UAE," he added.

"Several people were waiting to get their hands on the English title at our store the moment we put the books on display last week."

The glossy, hardbound book with the Dubai Ruler's portrait on the cover is hard to miss at Borders, another popular destination for bibliophiles in the country.

"There's been a huge interest for the English title. The Arabic one was a best-seller already, but the new launch is creating its own fan base," said Sameh Abdullah, purchasing manager at Borders UAE. He said they have been selling "hundreds" of copies daily across their 18 store locations.

Another retailer that has been busy keeping up with the demand is international entertainment retail chain Virgin Megastores.

"We were extremely excited to receive our stock and build our displays of the highly anticipated autobiography last week," said Louwrens Potgieter, regional product manager of Virgin Megastore Middle East. "It immediately joined the Arabic edition at the very top of our book charts across all our stores, and it will probably remain a favourite among our customers and staff for a long while," he added, before saying that their choice for February's Book of the Month was "a very easy one to make".

Since Khaleej Times got a signed copy of the book from the Dubai Ruler, it has been featuring excerpts from each of the 50 chapters every day.

abhishek@khaleejtimes.com