Trevor Żahra: Premju għall-Kontribut Siewi fil-Qasam tal-Kotba u l-Letteratura 2020
Il-Premju għall-Kontribut Siewi fil-Qasam tal-Kotba u l-Letteratura, li huwa l-aktar unur prestiġġjuż fil-Premju Nazzjonali tal-Ktieb, fl-2020 mar għand Trevor Żahra, li faċilment jista’ jissejjaħ l-aktar kittieb prolifiku Malti. Dan il-premju jagħti ġieh lil karriera twila ta’ kontribuzzjonijiet importanti għal-letteratura u l-qasam tal-kotba lokali, u għalhekk ġie deċiż li jmur għand Żahra li tul ħajtu kiteb aktar minn 130 ktieb għat-tfal, l-adolexxenti u l-kbar. Huwa wkoll l-aktar kittieb li rebaħ il-Premju Nazzjonali tal-Ktieb kemm ilu jingħata— 19-il darba bħala kittieb u darba bħala l-aħjar illustratur. Fost rikonoxximenti oħra li ngħata tul ħajtu hemm il-Midalja għall-Qadi tar-Repubblika (2004), il-Midalja tad-Deheb mis-Soċjetà tal-Arti (2012), u l-Midalja tad-Deheb mill-Akkademja tal-Malti (2018).
Il-ġibda għall-kitba bdiet f’Żahra minn ta’ età żgħira, fil-fatt l-ewwel kitbiet ippubblikati tiegħu kienu xi poeżiji f’The Children’s Own, fil-ġurnal Il-Berqa u f’għadd ta’ rivisti oħra. Hemm imbagħad l-istejjer ta’ Kunċett u Marinton, li ħafna jiftakru jitgħallmu fis-sekondarja, u li Trevor innifsu kitibhom meta kien għadu student fir-raba’ sena tas-sekondarja. Il-Pulena tad-Deheb kien l-ewwel ktieb tiegħu li ppubblika fl-1971 meta kellu 21 sena, u li ġibed fuqu l-attenzjoni tal-pubbliku u l-kritiċi letterarji.
Għalkemm biċċa xogħol tagħżel ktieb wieħed li Żahra jibqa’ mfakkar għalih, tajjeb li jissemma Taħt il-Weraq tal-Palm. Ippubblikat fl-1974, dar-rumanz jiġi studjat mill-istudenti universitarji bħala wieħed mir-rumanzi Moderni ewlenin tat-tieni nofs tas-seklu għoxrin f’Malta. Bħalma għamlu kittieba oħra tas-sittinijiet u s-sebgħinijiet – bħal Alfred Sant, Oliver Friggieri, Frans Sammut u J.J. Camilleri – Żahra beda jikteb rumanzi u novelli differenti minn dak li nkiteb qablu, b’narrattiva li tittratta l-kriżi tal-identità umana u nazzjonali, b’kontenut psikoloġiku u politiku, u bl-introduzzjoni tal-antieroj. Fir-rumanz il-protagonist Robbie jkun jidher li miexi bħal ħafna oħrajn lejn ħajja tradizzjonali Maltija, u saħansitra jidħol jistudja għal qasis. Madankollu, kif tgħid il-poetessa Doreen Micallef fid-daħla għall-ktieb, din il-ġrajja “patetika” kien ikollha effett differenti fuq Robbie, u forsi kienet tagħmlu eroj… li kieku riedha. Il-protagonist antieroj jirribella, jiżżewweġ u anki jfittex esperjenzi sesswali barra ż-żwieġ. Dir-ribelljoni tgħaddih minn serje ta’ żvinturi.
Il-versatilità li tikkaratterizza lil Żahra hija riflessa fil-ġeneri differenti li kiteb fihom u fil-karriera ta’ 33 sena jgħallem il-Malti u l-Arti fl-iskejjel sekondarji, biex ma nsemmux ukoll il-ħila tiegħu bħala illustratur. Mindu ppubblika l-ewwel rumanz tiegħu, Żahra kompla jippubblika l-kotba għat-tfal fl-istess ħin. Fil-fatt kien hu li ppubblika l-ewwel workbooks tat-tfal f’Malta għat-tagħlim tal-Malti. Il-kontribut tiegħu għall-kotba tat-tfal qajla huwa egwaljat minn awturi Maltin oħra, u l-probabbiltà hi li f’kull dar f’Malta u Għawdex issib ktieb għat-tfal minn tiegħu. Skont Oliver Friggieri, Żahra ħoloq dal-ġeneru fil-letteratura Maltija, welldu u rabbieh b’sens qawwi ta’ dmir u kontinwazzjoni li tinfirex fuq medda mdaqqsa ta’ snin. Bħala illustratur Żahra rebaħ il-Premju Nazzjonali tal-Ktieb fl-2003 għall-aħjar illustratur ta’ kotba tat-tfal bil-ktieb Din l-art u kull ma fiha (Kotba Sagħtar). Huwa wkoll ambaxxatur tal-qari attiv immens. Iżur regolarment skejjel (bħalissa b’mov virtwali) u jitkellem mat-tfal, il-ġenituri u l-għalliema dwar l-importanza tal-qari, u anki jmexxi seminars dwar is-sengħa tal-kitba.
Bħala kittieb “eklettiku, imżewwaq, sperimentali, kurjuż, li jiskopri terreni ġodda waqt li jissokta dejjem fit-toroq mibdija qabel” (Oliver Friggieri), Żahra għandu sehem importanti għall-iżvilupp tal-ġeneru tan-Novella bil-Malti. Ippubblika disa’ kotba ta’ novelli, bl-aktar wieħed riċenti jkun Sempreviva (Merlin Publishers, 2020) li fih 37 novella li jesploraw is-sehem tal-fjuri f’ħajjitna. Bil-ġabra 365 (Merlin Publishers, 2018) – ktieb ta’ elf paġna b’ġabra ta’ rakkonti, novelli, aneddoti u riflessjonijiet għal kull jum tas-sena – rebaħ il-Premju Nazzjonali tal-Ktieb fl-2019.
Xi rumanzi u novelli ta’ Żahra nqalbu f’ilsna differenti u ġew ippubblikati barra minn Malta. Fosthom hemm Il-Ħajja Sigrieta tan-Nanna Ġenoveffa (Merlin Publishers, 2008) li ġie ppubblikat fi Franza minn L’Harmattan, fir-Russja minn Khudozhestvennaya Literatura, u fin-Norveġja minn Pandora Forlag. Le Parfum des œiletts huwa għażla ta’ novelli minn kotba differenti tiegħu, maqlubin għall-Franċiż minn Roland Viard. Sfidi (Merlin Library, 2005) u Vespri (Merlin Publishers, 2015) inqalbu għar-Russu u l-Franċiż, rispettivament.
Żahra kiteb ukoll bosta xogħlijiet għall-palk li tellgħu fit-Teatru Manoel, It-Teatru tal-Università u l-Kavallier ta’ San Ġabku. L-aktar magħrufa huma x’aktarx: Is-Surmast, Minn Wara ż-Żipp u adattament tar-rumanz Il-Ħajja Sigrieta tan-Nanna Ġenoveffa.
Fl-età ta’ 73 sena Żahra għadu jikteb, u għadu ammirat għall-kreattività tiegħu. Bħalma jinnota l-kritiku letterarju Mario Cassar fil-ktieb riċenti dwar il-kittieb, Bejn Storja u Miti: Trevor Żahra (Horizons, 2020), “Trevor jogħġobni għax il-bir tal-memorja tiegħu hu bla qiegħ.”
Il-ħajja u l-kitba ta’ Trevor Żahra se jiġu ċċelebrati b’avveniment imħejji apposta waqt il-Festival Nazzjonali tal-Ktieb 2021, li matulu l-pubbliku se jkollu ċ-ċans isir jaf lir-rebbieħ ta’ dal-premju prestiġġjuż aktar mill-qrib.
Tista’ tixtri l-kotba ta’ Trevor Żahra minn https://merlinpublishers.com/author-book/trevor-zahra/?lang=mt
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Trevor Żahra: Recipient of the 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award
In 2020, the prestigious National Book Prize Lifetime Achievement Award for Literature was awarded to Trevor Żahra, widely recognised as Malta’s most prolific writer. The Prize pays tribute to Żahra’s long career of important contributions to local literature, having published more than 130 books for children, adolescents and adults. Żahra is also Malta’s most decorated National Book Prize winning author, having received the Prize for nineteen times as a writer and once as an illustrator. Among the many recognition awards he received were also the Midalja għall-Qadi tar-Repubblika (2004), the Midalja tad-Deheb mis-Soċjetà tal-Arti (2012), and the Midalja tad-Deheb mill-Akkademja tal-Malti (2018).
Żahra’s interest in writing began at an early age, with his first published works being poems. These appeared in The Children’s Own, the daily Il-Berqa and a number of other magazines and newspapers. Many of us remember reading in secondary school the stories of Kunċett and Marinton, which Trevor wrote when he himself was in the fourth year of secondary school. It was only in 1971, when Trevor was 21 years old, that his first work was published. Il-Pulena tad-Deheb grabbed the attention of the public and literary critics alike.
While sigling out one title to represent Żahra’s production as a whole is a challenging task, it is worth mentioning Taħt il-Weraq tal-Palm. Published in1974 this novel is currently part of the reading list for university undergraduates as one of the defining Maltese modern novels of the second half of the twentieth century. Just like other young writers from the 1960s and ’70s – such as Alfred Sant, Oliver Friggieri, Frans Sammut and J.J. Camilleri – Żahra authored novels introducing plots dealing with existential and national identity crises, psychological and political content, and featuring antihero protagonists. These elements made such novels to differ from the works by Żahra’s predecessors. Taħt il-Weraq tal-Palm’s protagonist, Robbie, appears to be trailing, like many others, a conventional path towards priesthood. As the poet Doreen Micallef writes in the book’s introduction, this “pathetic” tale would have had different consequences for Robbie, perhaps even making him a hero, should he have wanted to. However the antihero rebels, marries and even seeks sexual experiences outside of marriage – a rebellion which leads to a series of mishaps.
Żahra’s characteristic versatility is reflected both in his use of multiple genres and in his 33-year-long career of teaching Maltese and Art in secondary schools, not to mention his penchant for illustrating his own books. Since the publication of his first novel, Żahra has continued to publish books for both children and adults, at times concurrently. As a matter of fact it was Żahra who authored the first workbooks for the teaching of Maltese to children. His contribution to children’s literature in Malta is also hardly matched, and chances are that in every home in Malta and Gozo one can find one of his children’s books. According to Oliver Friggieri, Żahra in fact created children’s literature in Maltese – he gave birth to it and nurtured it with a strong sense of duty and continuity over an extensive number of years. As an illustrator, he won the National Book Prize in 2003 for his illustrations in the children’s book Din l-art u kull ma fiha (Kotba Sagħtar). Żahra is also a very active reading ambassador. He regularly visits schools (nowadays online) and gives talks to children, parents and teachers about the importance of reading, or leads seminars on the craft of writing.
An “eclectic, multicoloured, experimental, curious [writer], one who explores new terrain while continuing on trodden paths” (Oliver Friggieri), Trevor Żahra also played and important role in the development of the Maltese short story, a genre that as a form of writing then permeates his plays and novels. The author of nine short story collections, his most recent is Semperviva (Merlin Publishers, 2020) containing 37 stories exploring the role of flowers in daily life. With the collection 365 (Merlin Publishers, 2018) – a thousand-page book gathering a series of stories, anecdotes and reflections for each day of the year – Żahra won the 2019 National Book Prize.
A number of Żahra’s novels and short stories have been translated into foreign languages and published abroad. Among them, Il-Ħajja Sigrieta tan-Nanna Ġenoveffa (Merlin Publishers, 2008) published in France by L’Harmattan, in Russia by Khudozhestvennaya Literatura, and in Norway by Pandora Forlag. Le Parfum des œiletts, translated into French by Roland Viard, is a selection of short stories from his various works. Sfidi (Merlin Library, 2005) and Vespri (Merlin Publishers, 2015) have been translated into Russian and French respectively.
Żahra also wrote numerous works for the stage, performed at the Manoel Theater, the University Theater and at Spazju Kreattiv. The best known are: Is-Surmast, Minn Wara ż-Żipp and an adaptation of the novel Il-Ħajja Sigrieta tan-Nanna Ġenoveffa.
At 73 years of age Żahra keeps on writing, and is still admired for his creativity. As literary critic Mario Cassar notes in the latest book about him, Bejn Storja u Miti: Trevor Żahra (Horizons, 2020), “I like Trevor because his memory is a boundless well.”
The author will be celebrated in a special event dedicated to his life and career during the 2021 Malta Book Festival, where the public will have the chance to meet the renowned author, know more about him career, and ask him questions.
Buy Trevor Żahra’s books from https://merlinpublishers.com/author-book/trevor-zahra/
