Skip to main content

9 authors fight for £15,000 Etisalat Prize for Literature 2016

Etisalat

Helon Habila, chairman of the judging panel of the 2016 Etisalat Prize for Literature has announced the 2016 longlist of nine books for the award.

The list is made up of entries from first-time authors whose books were published in the past 24 months.

The listed books are ‘Mr. and Mrs. Doctor’ by Julie Iromuanya (Coffee House Press, USA); The Yearning. by Mohale Mashigo (Pan-Macmillan, South Africa); Piggy Boy’s Blues by Nakhane Toure (Blackbird Books imprint of Jacana Media, SA); The Peculiars, by Jen Thorpe (Penguin Random House, USA); Born on a Tuesday by Elnathan John (Cassava Republic, Nigeria), and After Many Days by Jowhor Ile (Farafina an imprint of Kachifo Limited, Nigeria); Dub Steps by Andrew Miller (Jacana Media, South Africa); The Seed Thief by Jacqui L’Ange (Umuzi Publishers, South Africa) and Nwezelenga: The Star Child by Unathi Magubeni (Black Bird Books Imprint of Jacana Media, South Africa).

The Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Matthew Willsher, endorsed the judges’ carefully moderated selection process, saying; “The novels in this year’s longlist represent a good number of African publishing companies. Each novel reflects a very interesting and dynamic perspective that will provoke intense conversations about different personal and societal issues.”

The judging panel, comprising Nigerian novelist and poet, Helon Habila (Chair), South African writer/activist Elinor Sisulu and Ivorian writer and Africa39 laureate Edwige Rene Dro, now has the task of selecting three authors for the shortlist, which will be unveiled in December.

The winner of the 2016 Etisalat Prize for Literature will be announced in March 2017 and will receive £15,000, an engraved Montblanc Meisterstück pen, and an Etisalat-sponsored fellowship at the University of East Anglia to be mentored by renowned Professor Giles Foden, author of The Last King of Scotland.

Etisalat Prize for Literature is a pan-African prize that celebrates debut African writers of published book-length fiction. Previous winners include Zimbabwe’s NoViolet Bulawayo in 2013 for her novel: ‘We Need New Names,’ South Africa’s Songeziwe Mahlangu in 2014 for Penumbra and Democratic Republic of Congo’s Fiston Mwanza Mujila, whose book Tram 83 won the Etisalat Prize in 2015.

The Etisalat Prize for Literature also incorporates an award for Flash Fiction; an online-based competition for non-published African writers of short stories.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Houthis Claim Attack on Central Israel in Response to Gaza ‘Massacres’

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has taken a concerning regional turn as the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for an attack on central Israel. The group announced this as part of their escalating response to what they describe as "massacres" in Gaza amid the Israeli military’s operations in the strip. Details of the Attack The Houthis, a Shiite militant group with ties to Iran, declared that they launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel. While the exact impact of these attacks remains unclear, reports suggest that Israel’s defense systems intercepted several threats over its airspace. This marks a significant escalation as the Houthis widen their involvement in the conflict beyond their typical operations within Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. The Houthis’ Justification In their statement, the Houthis framed the attack as retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which they characterized as indiscriminate bombings resultin...
Post a Comment
Read more

Court grants Fani-Kayode N50m bail

Fani-kayode sandwiched by EFCC officials Justice James Tsoho of the Federal High Court Abuja on Thursday granted a N50m bail to former spokesman of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode. Fani-Kayode was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a five-count charge of money laundering to the tune of N26m. Fani-Kayode is the sole defendant in the fresh charges numbered, FHC/ABJ/CR/140/2016. The EFCC accused the defendant of diverting 26 million Naira allegedly received from the ONSA while Sambo Dasuki was in office. The anti-graft agency also accused him of handling the said N26 million without going through financial institution as required under the Money Laundering Act. The embattled former minister is already facing 17-count charge of money laundering before the Lagos Division of the court, along with a former Finance Minister; Nenadi Usman, Danjuma Yusuf and a firm; Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited. They were charg...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fire: UniJos Senate convenes emergency meeting on Monday

Fire at the University of Jos Library University of Jos is to convene an emergency senate meeting on Monday to review the level of damage done to the institution by the Saturday night inferno. The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sebastian Maimako, disclosed this on Sunday after inspecting areas affected by the incident. The fire, which lasted for more than six hours, destroyed the Library Complex that equally houses the faculties of management and social sciences. The fire also destroyed examination scripts, books and very crucial materials. Consequently, the vice-chancellor said “the Senate will meet tomorrow (Monday) to take a decision about the unmarked examination scripts that were burnt.” On the cause of the inferno, Maimako said investigation had commenced, adding that “nothing has been confirmed yet. We are still investigating.” The vice chancellor said the school was already working with federal authorities toward establishing a main fire station since the mini fire station in t...
Post a Comment
Read more