We present to you the JamesMurua.com outstanding literary awards 2016. 2016 has been an amazing year for the African literary community. The books have been coming in droves from new literary stars with awards old and new recognizing them and literary festivals giving them a platform. Here is a snapshot of 2016 with both our […]
We Introduce Long Reads a new concept that will feature every Friday here at JamesMurua.com. We start with Noo Saro-Wiwa’s nonfiction offering Paradise Within. Enjoy. One warm evening in the Sea Point neighbourhood of Cape Town, I learned the full extent of my ineffectiveness in a crisis. My acquaintance, Pieter de Westhuizen, was being manhandled […]
Channels Book Club, one of the few TV shows on the continent dedicated to books, have unveiled their top 20 Nigerian Books of 2016. Some of the authors featured on this list include Leye Adenle, Johwor Ile, Elnathan John and Helon Habila. The Channels Book Club is a book and author based program aiming to […]
The Sawiris Cultural Award 2016 has made public its shortlists for best novel, short-story collection, and best screenplay. The six shortlisted for the best-novel prize were: Ahmed El Fakharany, Alaa Farghali, Mohamed Rabie, Musfafa Musa, Nahla Karam, and Hadra Girgis. The Sawiris Cultural Award which is open to Egyptian nationals only is one of the […]
Event: Cosmos Book Club features Kinyanjui Kombani’s The Last Villains of Molo Date: Saturday January 7th 2017 Time: 14:00–16:00hrs. Venue: Cosmos Coffee House, Highwayy Mall, Mombasa Road (opposite Nyayo Stadium). In The Last Villains of Molo, Kinyanjui Kombani in his debut novel speaks about the tale of Kenya that we hear about in hushed conversations […]
Nigerian writer Elnathan John has announced that he will be doing an official tour of Nairobi in February 2017. Elnathan John is not a new name for many followers of African literature. He has been twice nominate for the Caine Prize for African writing in 2013 and in 2015. His first nomination brought some drama […]
Jalada Africa and Ngugi wa Thiong’o were the big literary winners at Kenya’s Sanaa Theatre Awards 2016 hosted at the Kenya National Theatre on 14th December 2016. There was a celebratory mood at the Kenya National Theatre as the performing theatre all came together to celebrate their best at the Sanaa Theatre Awards. Also at […]
The New African’s 100 most influential Africans list 2016 include a healthy number of those in the book business from all corners of the continent. The fill list was done with the help of guest editor Bibi Bakare-Yusuf and includes Alain Mabankou. Hawa Jande Golakai, Ellah Wakatama Allfrey, Roye Okupe, Thando Mgqolozana, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, […]
The Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature 2016 Supported by ALAF Limited winners have been announced. They are Idrissa Haji Abdalla and Hussein Wamaywa for prose and Ahmed Hussein Ahmed for poetry. The Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature was founded in 2014 by Dr. Lizzy Attree (Caine Prize Director) and Dr. Mukoma […]
Egyptian writer Adel Esmat was awarded the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature 2016 for his novel Hikayât Yûsuf Tadrus (The Tales of Yusuf Tadrus). The presentation was made at a ceremony in the American University in Cairo’s Oriental Hall on the Tahrir Square Campus. The Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature is a literary award for […]
The Morland Writing scholarships 2016 winners have been announced and they are Abdul Adan (Somalia), Ayesha Harruna Attah (Ghana), Lidudumalingani Mqombothi (South Africa), and Nneoma Ike-Njoku (Nigeria). The Judges for this year were, Ellah Wakatama Allfrey, the Chair, accompanied by Olufemi Terry and Muthoni Garland. “We were especially concerned this year to choose scholars whose proposals […]
Nadifa Mohamed will facilitate the Iceland Writers Retreat 2017; one of her wards will be Kenyan writer Peter Ngila. So you’ve heard of the great writers from Iceland like Gunnar Gunnarsson, Bobby Fischer, Sjón, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, and Snorri Sturluson right? Nothing? Well you might not have heard of them but they are kinda famous in […]
The Caine Prize 2017 judges have been announced and they are led by award winning author, poet and, editor Nii Ayikwei Parkes. He will be joined by Monica Arac de Nyeko, Professor Ricardo Ortiz, Ghazi Gheblawi, and Dr Ranka Primorac. The applications for the Caine Prize for Africa Literature will be closing on 31st January […]
The Abantu Book Festival 2016 opened with a moving opening ceremony in the Soweto Theatre in South Africa on December 8th 2016. The event emceed by Lebo Mashile was marked by song from Zuko Collective, a poem from Koleka Putuma and a keynote address by Gcina Mhlophe. It’s been a long time in the making […]
Sibongile Fisher is the winner of the 2016 Short Story Day Africa Prize for Short Fiction for her story A Door Ajar. TJ Benson was first runners up followed by Megan Ross in third. The Prize is worth R10 000 to the winner with second and third place cash prizes of R2 000 and R1 […]
