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| Adichie |
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| Unigwe |
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| SHoneyin |
ADA DIKE
Eight
Nigerians including: Chimamanda Adichie, Tope Folarin, Lola Shoneyin, Chika
Unigwe and four others have been selected as part Africa39 authors.
Africa39
authors are internationally acclaimed writers below 40 years of age who have
won awards that distinguished them from others.
Daily
Newswatch gathered that Africa39 will bring to worldwide attention the best
work from Africa south of the Sahara and its diaspora. “The selected writers
will be invited to the Port Harcourt Book Fair in October 2014 as part of the
celebrations of UNESCO’s World Book Capital, Port Harcourt, Nigeria, where the
book will be launched.
“They
are 39
writers under the age of 40 from Africa south of the Sahara, published in
English throughout the world by Bloomsbury, published in conjunction with Hay
Festival and Rainbow Book Club, supported by Port Harcourt World Book Capital,
Royal African Society, English PEN, Arts Council England and Commonwealth
Writers and events across the world throughout 2014 until 2016, including
Manchester Literary Festival, Hay Festival, Norwich Writers’ Centre and the
British Library,” the organisers stated.
Daily
Newswatch further learnt that the judges, who selected the 39 writers from up
to 200 submissions researched by Binyavanga Wainaina, founding editor of the
acclaimed Nairobi-based literary magazine Kwani? were: Margaret
Busby (UK/Ghana) - Publisher, broadcaster and reviewer, editor
of the anthology Daughters of Africa, Elechi Amadi (Nigeria) - Author of plays, memoir and
novels, including The Slave, Estrangement and The Woman of Calabar and Osonye
Tess Onwueme (Nigeria/USA) - Playwright, poet and scholar.
The
writers’ names were unveiled on Tuesday, April 8, 2014 at 9.30am at PH UNESCO
World Book Capital exhibition stand (stand number: i400), The London Book Fair,
Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Warwick Road, London SW5 9TA. Breakfast and
introductions from Margaret Busby, one of the judges, Koko
Kalango, founder of the Rainbow Book Club, Peter
Florence and Cristina Fuentes from the Hay Festival, and Bill
Swainson from Bloomsbury Publishing.
Below
are the biographies of authors from different countries in Africa that make up Africa39
authors:
Chimamanda
Ngozi ADICHIE
Born
in Nigeria, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the author of the novels Purple
Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah and the story
collection The Thing Around Your Neck. Translated into over thirty
languages, her work has been awarded prizes including the Commonwealth Writer’s
Prize, the Orange Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction.
Chika
UNIGWE
Chika
Unigwe was born in Enugu, Nigeria. She is the author of On Black Sisters
Street and Night Dancer. She is the most recent winner of the
Nigeria Literature Award and her work has been published extensively in
journals and papers around the world including the New York Times and
the UK Guardian.
Tope
FOLARIN
Tope
Folarin made his fiction debut in Transition with ‘Miracle’ in 2012, for
which he was awarded the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2013. He is a
graduate of Morehouse College and the University of Oxford, where he earned two
Master's degrees as a Rhodes Scholar. He lives in Washington DC.
Lola
SHONEYIN
Lola
Shoneyin is the author of three volumes of poetry and two children's books. The
Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives, her debut novel, was long-listed for the
Orange Prize for Fiction and won the PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Literary Award
and the Ken Saro-Wiwa Prose Prize. She is the director of the Aké Arts and Book
festival.
Ukamaka
OLISAKWE
Ukamaka
Olisakwe was raised in Kano State. Her debut novel, Eyes of a Goddess,
was published in 2012. Her stories have appeared in various online journals and
blogs including Saraba, Sentinel Nigeria, Short Story Day Africa
and Naija Stories. She writes a weekly column for the Nigerian Telegraph.
Chibundu
ONUZO
Chibundu
Onuzo’s debut novel, The Spider King’s Daughter, was longlisted for the
Desmond Elliott Prize, shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the
Commonwealth Book Prize. She writes comment pieces for the Guardian,
with a special interest in Nigeria. She currently completing a Masters in
Public Policy and writing her second novel.
Abubakar
Adam IBRAHIM
Abubakar
Adam Ibrahim’s debut story collection The Whispering Trees was long
listed for the inaugural 2014 Etisalat Prize for Literature; the title story
was shortlisted for the 2013 Caine Prize for African Writing. A 2013 Gabriel
García Márquez Fellow, he won the BBC African Performance Prize in 2007. He
lives in Abuja, Nigeria where he works as an arts editor for a national
newspaper.
Rotimi
BABATUNDE
Rotimi
Babatunde writes poems, plays and prose fiction. His story ‘Bombay’s Republic’
was awarded the 2012 Caine Prize for African Writing. His plays have been
produced by the Young Vic in London, the Halcyon Theatre in Chicago, and
Sweden’s Riksteatern, among others. He lives in Nigeria.
Richard
ALI MUTU
Richard
Ali Mutu writes in Lingala. The winner of the 2009 Mark Twain Prize, he
published his first novel, Le cauchemardesque de
Tabu, in 2009. He has also written
poetry, monologues and theatre performance pieces.
Monica
ARAC de Nyeko
Monica
Arac de Nyeko is from Uganda. She was shortlisted for the Caine Prize for
African Writing in 2004 for her story ‘Strange Fruit’, going on to win the
prize in 2007 for ‘Jambula Tree’.
Eileen
BARBOSA
Eileen
Almeida Barbosa is a Cape Verdean writer and advisor to the Prime Minister. She
is the recipient of the inaugural National Pantera Revelation Prize 2005 for
Short Stories and the Pantera Revelation Prize 2005 for Poetry. Her story
collection, Eileenístic, was published in 2007. She is currently at work
on a second collection.
Igoni
BARRET
Igoni
Barrett is the author of the story collection Love Is Power, or Something
Like That. He is the winner of a BBC World Service short story competition,
the recipient of a Chinua Achebe Center Fellowship, a Norman Mailer Center
Fellowship, and a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Residency. He lives in
Lagos.
Jackee
Budesta BATANDA
Jackee
Budesta Batanda is a short story writer and independent journalist. The Africa
regional winner of the 2003 Commonwealth Short Story Competition, her work has
been performed on the BBC World Service and appears in publications including
the
New York Times, the Boston Globe and the Mail & Guardian.
She is currently at work on a novel.
Recaredo
BOTURU
Recaredo
Silebo Boturu is a poet, playwright, actor and theatre director from Equatorial
Guinea. His award-winning articles have been published in the Afro-Hispanic
Review and in both Equatoguinean and Spanish publications. His collection
of poetry and plays, Luz en la Noche (Light in the Night), was published
in 2010.
Nana
BREW-Hammond
Nana
Ekua Brew-Hammond is a Ghanaian-American writer living in New York. Her
fiction, poetry and essays have been published by African Writing,
Ebony.com, Sunday Salon and Nike, among others. Publishers Weekly hailed
her novel Powder Necklace as ‘a winning debut’. Most recently, she
founded the blog People Who Write.
Shadreck
CHIKOTI
Shadreck
Chikoti is a Malawian writer. His awards include the 2013 Peer Gynt Literary
Award for his forthcoming futuristic novel, Azotus the Kingdom. He is
vice president of the Malawi Writers Union and Director of Pan African
Publishers Ltd.
Edwige-Renée
DRO
Edwige-
Renée Dro worked as a marketing assistant and community journalist in the UK
before moving back to Cote d'Ivoire. Her stories have been published Prima magazine
and africanwriter.com. She is currently completing work on her first novel and
is the founder of Abidjan Lit, an African fiction book group.
Clifton
GACHAGUA
Clifton
Gachagua is the recipient of the 2013 inaugural Sillerman Prize for African
Poetry. In 2013 he was longlisted for the 2013 Kwani? Manuscript Project
and his debut poetry collection, The Madman at Kilifi, was published in
2014. His work has appeared in publications including Storymoja and Kwani? He
is currently an editor and television scriptwriter.
Stanley
GAZEMBA
Stanley
Gazemba is a journalist and the author of three novels: The Stone Hills of
Maragoli, Khama and Callused Hands and eight children’s
books. A recipient of the Jomo Kenyatta Prize, his articles and stories have
appeared in publications including ‘A’ is for Ancestors, the Caine Prize
Anthology, the East African and the New York Times.
Mehul
GOHIL
Mehul
Gohil was born in Nairobi, Kenya. He is the winner of the Kwani? ‘The
Kenya I Live In’ short story prize in 2010. His fiction has been published in Kwani?
and on several online platforms including Short Story Day Africa. His
journalism has appeared in publications including the Shahan Journal and
chessbase.com.
Hawa
Jande GOLAKAI
Hawa
Jande Golakai was born in Liberia and has lived in several African countries.
Her debut novel, The Lazarus Effect, was shortlisted for the 2011 Sunday
Times Fiction Prize, the University of Johannesburg Debut Prize and
longlisted for the Wole Soyinka Prize. She works as a medical immunologist and
is currently completing her second novel.
Shafinaaz
HASSIM
Shafinaaz
Hassim is a South African writer and sociologist. She is the author of the
novel, SoPhia (2012) and several works of nonfiction. A social
commentator and contributor to the Mail & Guardian, her work has
been short-listed for the K Sello Duiker Award and the University of
Johannesburg Debut Prize for Creative Writing.
Namwali
SERPELL
Born
in Lusaka, Namwali Serpell is an assistant professor at the University of
California, Berkeley. She is the author of a book of literary criticism and her
fiction has appeared in publications including Callaloo, Tin House and
The Best American Short Stories 2009. She was shortlisted for the 2010
Caine Prize for African Literature and is a Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers’
Award recipient.
Nii
Ayikwei PARKES
Nii
Ayikwei Parkes is a writer, editor and performance poet. His debut novel, Tail
of the Blue Bird, was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Prize and translated
into Dutch, German, French and Japanese. He is the publisher at flipped eye publishing,
one of the
most
respected small presses in the UK and curator of the African Writers' Evening
reading series.
Novuyo
Rosa TSHUMA
Novuyo
Rosa Tshuma is a Zimbabwe-born writer. Her short fiction has appeared in
publications including the 2010 Caine Prize Anthology. She was awarded
the 2009 Yvonne Vera Award and her debut collection was published 2013. She is
currently a Maytag Fellow at the MFA Creative Writing Programme at the
University of Iowa.
Mary
WATSON
Mary
Watson published her debut story collection, Mass, in 2001 and was the
2006 winner of the Caine Prize for African Writing. She is the author of the
literary thriller The Cutting Room, and a contributor to several
anthologies. Her work has been translated into languages including Arabic,
Italian, German and Dutch.
Zukiswa
WANNER
Zukiswa
Wanner was born in Zambia of South African and Zimbabwean parentage. Her debut
novel, The Madams, was published in 2006. She is the author of three
additional novels as well as being a regular contributor to publications
including the New African, the Mail & Guardian, Elle and
O magazine.
Mohamed
Yunnis RAFIQ
Mohamed
Yunus Rafiq is a writer and independent documentary film maker. The co-author
of a poetry collection, Landscapes of the Heart, he is also a member of
the internationally acclaimed hip-hop group Xplastaz collective based in
Tanzania and the co-founder of Aang Serian Peace Village, a youth-led cultural
preservation organization
Stanley
Onjezani KENANI
Stanley
Onjezani Kenani was born in Malawi and currently lives in Switzerland. He has
twice been shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing, in 2008 and
2012. He is the author of the story collection For Honour and Other Stories and
is currently working on his first novel.
Dinaw
MENGESTU
Dinaw
Mengestu was born in Addis Ababa and is the award-winning author of three
novels, including All Our Names, published in 2014. His journalism and
fiction appears in publications including Harper’s, Granta and
the New Yorker. The recipient of
numerous
awards including the Guardian First Book award and a 2012 MacArthur
Foundation genius grant, he currently lives in New York City.
Nadifa
MOHAMED
Nadifa
Mohamed was born in Hargeisa and moved to England with her family in 1986. Her
first novel, Black Mamba Boy, was shortlisted for the Guardian First
Book Award and was awarded the Betty Trask Prize. In 2013 she was selected as
one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists. Her second novel is The
Orchard of Lost Souls.
Nthikeng
MOHLELE
Nthikeng
Mohlele was born in 1977 and grew up in Limpopo and Tembisa township, South
Africa. A graduate of the University of the Witwatersrand, he is the author of
the novels The Scent of Bliss and Small Things.
Linda
MUSITA
Linda
Musita is a writer, editor and lawyer. She is a literary agent at Lelsleigh Inc
in Nairobi and an editor at the Star newspaper. Her fiction has been
published on the Storymoja publishers’ blog and the Daily Nation. A
Storymoja Hay Festival 2012/13 fellow, she is currently working on her first
novel.
Sifiso
MZOMBE
Sifiso
Mzobe was born in Durban, South Africa. His debut novel, Young Blood,
was awarded the 2011 Herman Charles Bosman Award, the 2011 Sunday Times Fiction
Prize, the 2011 South African Literary Award and the Wole Soyinka Prize for
Literature in Africa. He currently works as a freelance journalist and is
writing his second novel.
Glaydah
NAMUKASA
Glaydah
Namukasa is a midwife and writer. Currently chairperson of the Uganda Women
Writers’ Association, Femrite, her awards include the Macmillan Writers Prize
for Africa. Her short stories are published in anthologies in Uganda, South
Africa, UK, US and Sweden. She is the author of three children’s books and is
currently completing her first novel.
Kioko
NDINDA
Kioko
Ndinda is a Kenyan-born writer and filmmaker. Her stories have been published
in Fresh Paint - Literary Vignettes by Kenyan Women, and Amka Space for
Women’s Creativity and other publications including Sanaa literary
magazine. A new story is forthcoming in Jalada Africa, an African writers’
collective.
ONDJAKI
Ondjaki
was born in Luanda. He is the recipient of numerous prizes, including the 2008
Grande Prémio de Conto Camilo Castelo Branco awarded by the Portuguese Writers'
Association
and the Prémio Jabuti. His novel Os Transparentes was awarded the
Saramago Prize in 2013. He currently lives in Rio de Janeiro.
Okwiri ODUOR
Okwiri
Oduor was born in Nairobi, Kenya. Her novella, The Dream Chasers was
highly commended in the Commonwealth Book Prize, 2012 and her work has appeared
or is forthcoming in Amka and Femrite anthologies, the New Inquiry, Kwani?,
Saraba magazine, and Africa Writing Online. She is a 2014 MacDowell
Colony fellow.
Taiye
SELASI
Taiye
Selasi was born in London of Ghanaian and Nigerian parentage. Raised in
Massachusetts, her debut novel, Ghana Must Go, was published to
international acclaim in over 13 countries. In 2013 she was selected as one of Granta’s
Best of Young British novelists. She lives in Rome and is writing her second
novel.
Source: ellen.williams@bloomsbury.com
@BloomsburyBooks
@hayfestival @PHWBC
#africa39
#africa39
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