Winners of the “Young Writer of Almaty – 2025” Contest Awarded in Almaty

As part of the National Book Day, a solemn award ceremony for the winners of the annual citywide contest “Young Writer of Almaty – 2025” was held at the Writers’ Union of Kazakhstan.

This year, 173 school students aged 15–17 participated in the contest, presenting works in the fantasy genre inspired by the writings of Sapargali Begalin, in both Kazakh and Russian languages.

The winner in the Kazakh language category was Shyrailym Aybekkyzy, a student of the Abai Boarding School for Gifted Children, who based her story on Sapargali Begalin’s book Aldangan Zholbarys (“The Deceived Tiger”). In the Russian language category, the top prize was awarded to Renat Bekkulov, a student of Secondary School No. 52, whose work was titled A Magical Journey into the World of Sapargali Begalin.

For authors under the age of 15, an additional nomination titled “Young Talent – 2025” was established by decision of the expert council and jury members. In this category, 16 works were recognized, and their authors received encouragement prizes and certificates.