Fadimatou Bello, Fritz Bell, and Albert Thierry Nkili Abu are the three finalists for Prix Kon Nnanga 2019 announced on October 14, 2019.
Jean-Louis Njemba Medu was a Cameroonian writer considered a pioneer of the African novel. His first was the science fiction/fantasy novel Nnanga Kon in his native Bulu language in 1932. The story deals with the encounter between the Bulu tribe and a white missionary; the title literally means “white ghosts” or “phantom albinos” in Bulu.
In 2016, Cameroon’s Le Club des Muses adopted the novel title as the name of the literary prize Prix Kon Nnanga to honour a young Cameroonian author living in the country. Previous winners of the prize, which is part of the country’s Grand Prix des Associations Littéraires, have been Séraphin Deffo Deffo (2018), Djhamidi Bond (2017), and Raoul Djimeli (2016).
The finalists for the 2019 edition of the prize were unveiled by its jury and those in the running are;
Fadimatou Bello (novel) Tilmiido: A controversial destiny the story of a girl born under a lucky star, but whose singular destiny will not always be in tune with the rigorous traditions of her village. A new objective look at the irreducible theme of the early marriage of the girl, and the place of women in rural societies in Africa.
Fritz Bell (short story collection) Broutilles. A great opportunity to revisit with a smile the social flaws and misunderstandings of our time: ecology, politics, mysticism, health, childhood, education, love, wars, etc.
Albert Thierry Nkili Abu (play) And the party could begin which marries the canons of dramaturgical writing fairly well, and is also distinguished by its rather original theme: a village hitherto quiet in its daily routine is suddenly enfeebled by a rumour of payment of family allowances to peasants.
The winner will be announced later in the year,
