Egyptian journalist/poet Youssef Rakha called it: The 2010 International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF, or “Arabic Booker”) has been awarded to the Saudi Arabian writer Abdo Khal for his novel Spewing Sparks As Big As Castles.

Abdo Khal accepted the $50,000 prize tonight in Abu Dhabi, at the city’s international book fair.

Khal was not my pick—or guess—for the winner. But a few weeks ago, Rakha looked into his crystal ball and said:

Khal is the most established and celebrated writer on the shortlist, and one might be forgiven for expecting the jury to embrace the least contentious choice after so much public acrimony.

Tonight’s announcement was made by the International Prize for Arabic Fiction judging chair, Kuwaiti writer Taleb Alrefai. He said:

The winning novel is a brilliant exploration of the relationship between the individual and the state. Through the eyes of its two dimensional protagonist, the book gives the reader a taste of the horrifying reality of the excessive world of the palace.

Hopefully the extract of Spewing Sparks As Big As Castles made available last week to subscribers of The National and Al Ittihad does not give a full idea of the value of the book. Perhaps the translation was flawed? Based on the (3,000-word-ish) extracts, Spewing Sparks was not one of my top three, which were The Lady from Tel Aviv, by Rabai Al-Madhoun, A Cloudy Day on the West Side, by Mohamed Mansi Qandil, and America, by Rabee Jaber.

I hope these three will nonetheless make their way into English; indeed, I hope all six books will reach wider audiences.

Also: Chad Post, of Three Percent, has now blogged about the announcement ceremony. He has up a very charming photo half-obscured by his thumb.