Notaila Ibrahim Rashed (1934- 2012): Former Editor in Chief of Samir Magazine and a pioneer of Egyptian children’s literature.
Rashed, known as Mama Lobna, wrote numerous children’s books and books for young adults, radio and television shows for children and young people in the whole Arabic speaking region.
She was editor-in chief for the Arabic children’s magazine ´Samir´ since it was founded in 1956 until 2002. In 1965 she also founded the children’s book section of the publishing house Dar el-Hilal in Cairo, where she worked as a publisher for five years.
Rashed began writing for children and young people while she was a student at Cairo University. Her first short stories were broadcast on the radio in 1953. In her work, Rashed combined the literary-cultural traditions of ancient and ´modern´ Egypt. She wanted her texts to provide children all around the world with an authentic portrayal of life in contemporary Egypt. She also translated children’s classics into Arabic, including Andersen’s ´The Emperor’s New Clothes´, Wilde’s ´The Happy Prince´ and Swell’s ´Black Beauty´.
She was a member of the High Committee of the Cairo International Festival for Children’s Film, and of the Child and Young People Committee of the Alexandria Library.
In 1978 she was awarded the State Award for Children’s Literature. In 1995 she received the State Award for Children’s Journalism and in 2002 the Medal of the Council of the Ministry of Culture.
