Khaberni - Minister of Culture Mustafa Al-Rawashdeh sponsored this evening, Saturday, at the National Library in Amman, the launch ceremony of the novel "The Nanny.. The Biography and Journey of a Great Lady in Giving" by the writer Ahed Al-Azmat.
At the event, attended by the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Culture Dr. Nidal Al-Ahmad and the General Director of the National Library Firas Al-Darabieh, Al-Rawashdeh said that the novel deals with the biography of a fighting and great woman who stood by the author's side. It is a journey filled with giving and sacrifices, and was a means to his success and broadened his horizons.
He expressed his encouragement for the persistent creative author and the human being with a committed opinion, loyal to the pact of writing, literature, and culture, noting that he found his spaces in the novel and essay writing as a means for producing thought, innovation, awareness, and belonging, reshaping his world with words.
It is noted that the author Al-Azmat is a young writer among those of high resolve who overcame their disabilities and difficult circumstances with the support and aid of his grandmother (the nanny) in continuing education and entering the world of writing and creativity with confident and successful steps.
In the context of the ceremony hosted by the writer and colleague Ali Saadah, the Minister of Culture announced that, believing in the role of the Ministry of Culture in supporting every creator and its belief in cultural diversity, the ministry will support all the novels written by the author Al-Azmat and print two of his novels as part of the Family Library project (Reading for All) this year, pointing to the creative works and novels he has accomplished, including; "Deprived Window", "Scream of Pen", "Lady of the Desert", "Scent of Departure", and "Something from My Life".
He noted that this novel portrays a human aspect, overflowing with loyalty and written with the ink of love and the pen of humanity that records for the mother and mothers, asserting that this novel is a document of loyalty for all mothers who have carved out heroism and faced challenges, and opened doors and windows as horizons for their children's success.
The vice president of the Jordanian Writers Association, Riyadh Yassin, in a critical reading of the novel, said that the novel deals with the theme of death as one of the major subjects that have occupied human literature through the ages, where death does not appear in the novel merely as a biological end, but as an existential moment that reshapes human consciousness and reveals the fragility of humans in the face of loss and absence.
Yassin explained that the novel falls within the category of human elegiac literature that addresses the tragedy as an event that breaks time and leaves a deep psychological impact on the surviving self, and is centered around the character of the mother as the center of existence and identity, as the writer recovers through memory the details of the relationship with the grandmother/mother, who was a source of security and support in his life.
He said that the novel "The Nanny" represents a genuine human document that succeeded in stripping bare the pain of loss and enshrining the image of the mother as a symbol of giving and sacrifice, while the act of writing becomes an act of loyalty and resistance to absence, and an attempt to mend the self broken by the inevitability of death.
The writer Anan Mahrous noted the simplicity of the novel's phrases paired with the elevation of the writer's feelings and the genuineness of his emotions through the autobiography of his grandmother who lived caring for and supporting him, making this biography worthy of being recorded and published as a clear creative milestone for many who are despairing, hoping they might reach the deep understanding that the author Al-Azmat possesses of optimism and hope.
The colleague Falha Brizat delivered the word of the author Al-Azmat, which stated "The meaning of loyalty is represented in remaining grateful for the kind acts; like someone giving you a piece of bread in your moment of hunger, you remain grateful for that as long as you live, so how—ladies and gentlemen—for someone who gave me from her life, exerted double effort, enveloped me with unmatched love, tenderness, and compassion overflowing my need in moments of need."
He added, "Because time has prematurely placed its burdens on this slender body, the existence of 'The Nanny' was a remedy for every breakage, and a turning point in the course of my fates, and luck that drastically changed my life for the better."
He indicated that today he is proficient in reading, writing, and authorship, and he would not have known that had it not been for the insistence of his illiterate grandmother and nanny who insisted on taking him out of the realms of ignorance to the expanse of education, where she used to take the walls of the school as a shade for her waiting, to return with him to their home in a daily journey throughout the seasons.
He said, today is a loyalty to the one who "made Ahed" and publishing the novel "The Nanny" came as a tribute to her spirit and her memory, and a remembrance of the virtues of a lady whose giving was extended.
The father of the author Eid Al-Azmat delivered a speech expressing his thanks to the Ministry of Culture for sponsoring this event, to the speakers, and the attendees, pointing out that his mother (Ahed's grandmother) was a great nanny who left behind a fragrant biography.
At the beginning of the event, a film material titled "A Covenant from Ahed to the One Resting in His Heart" about the author and his grandmother (the nanny) was shown, prepared and produced by the media professional Safaa Al-Ramahi.
At the end of the event, the author Al-Azmat signed copies of his novel for the audience.
