One of the most recognisable voices in popular music is coming to the UAE this weekend, and the ticket price is nothing at all.
Yusuf / Cat Stevens appears at the Sharjah International Book Fair on Sunday, 8 November, to talk about his bestselling memoir, Cat on the Road to Findout. The session runs from 2pm to 3pm at the Intellectual Hall, Expo Centre Sharjah, and is organised by Motivate Media Group.
He will be in conversation with broadcaster Tom Urquhart, a familiar voice to Dubai Eye 103.8 listeners.
A life with several distinct chapters
Anyone who grew up with Father and Son, Wild World or Peace Train already knows part of the story. The hour is billed as covering considerably more than the hits.
Stevens rose to prominence in the 1960s and became one of the defining musical voices of the 1970s. He has sold more than 100 million records and drawn over four billion streams — a figure that says something about how the catalogue has carried across generations rather than settling into nostalgia.
But the session is expected to range across the turns his life took after that. Towards the end of the 1960s he survived a near-fatal bout of tuberculosis, and the illness prompted a long search for meaning and spiritual understanding. In 1977 he embraced Islam and became known as Yusuf Islam.
He then stepped away from the music industry altogether, giving his time to his family, to philanthropy and to education. His later work has included advocacy for peace, humanitarian causes and ecological awareness.
That arc — fame, illness, faith, withdrawal, return — is what gives the memoir its shape, and what makes an hour of unscripted conversation about it more interesting than a standard book promotion.
What to expect from the session
The format is a live interview rather than a reading. Stevens is expected to share personal reflections, previously untold stories and the defining moments behind both the music and the decisions that followed it, including the stories behind some of his best-known songs.
The book
Cat on the Road to Findout is available from booksarabia.com for Dhs145.
Worth knowing for anyone buying a copy: the memoir includes dozens of illustrations drawn by Stevens himself — a detail that tends to go unmentioned, and one that makes the physical edition the better buy over a digital version.
Getting in
The session is free, but registration is required — turning up on the day without a confirmed spot is not an option. Registration is handled through sibf.com.
Given the name on the bill and a venue slot of only one hour, it would be sensible to register sooner rather than later.
For readers coming from Dubai, Expo Centre Sharjah is a straightforward drive, though the book fair draws heavy weekend traffic and the car parks fill early. Leaving extra time is wise.
Event details
Who: Yusuf / Cat Stevens, in conversation with Tom Urquhart
What: Discussion of his memoir, Cat on the Road to Findout
Where: Intellectual Hall, Expo Centre Sharjah
When: Sunday, 8 November 2026, 2pm to 3pm
Cost: Free, registration required
Register: sibf.com
Book: Dhs145 at booksarabia.com
Contact: sibf.com / @motivate_books on Instagram
