Top Stories
The O. Henry Prize Series Opens to African Magazines (Exclusive) 
Cover Story: The Worldly Ways of Teju Cole 
Inside a Nigerian Literary and Arts Hub 
4 Poetry Prizes That Are Currently Open 
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Just Lost Her Mother 
The 60 Notable Books of 2021 
Mark Gevisser’s Long Mission of Queer Visibility 
Eight Poets Up for 2021 Brunel Prize
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Features
Series Editor Jenny Minton Quigley on celebrating the short story form and the ripple effect of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s guest-editing role.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
The Nigerian social critic has blogged extensively on the intersection of African literature and politics.
By Uzoma Ihejirika
The judges praised his “allusive, lyrical poems [which] open a new itinerary in African poetry, drawing in Shona and Mandarin and mapping a journey of the Black body through India, Hong Kong, the Philippines and China.”
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
“I have always looked for validation for my short stories,” he said of the recognition from the Iowa City bookshop.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
The author of the short story collection If You Keep Digging on activism, the social power of literature, and South Africa’s need for change.
By Paula Willie-Okafor
Umezurike and Okonkwo won for poetry and fiction, respectively, and Nora Nneka won for nonfiction.
By Open Country Mag
The prize-winning Nigerian poet and co-founder of A Long House magazine honed his craft in the quiet, and then we heard his pathbreaking voice.
By Hauwa Shaffii Nuhu
For many writers and artists in the continent, the Motswana shaman, poet, scriptwriter, editor, and interviewer is a go-to for deep conversations. What she does is “about consciousness,” going “into the realm of memory.”
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
Books
The author of God’s Children Are Broken Little Things is “destined to join the ranks of artists such as Zadie Smith and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.”
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
And Then He Sang a Lullaby is described by the Grove Atlantic imprint as “a passionate love story about two young men who may have too far a distance to bridge to another.”
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
The “joyful and tender” Mama’s Sleeping Scarf, forthcoming from HarperCollins Children’s Books, was written when her daughter was 3 years old.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
The Booker Prize winner is on the February 2022 cover of Open Country Mag.
By Uzoma Ihejirika
Originally planned for December 2021, to mark our first anniversary, our first special issue, for April 2022, profiles 16 African writers and curators who have impacted, disrupted, reshaped, and even created literary culture in the last five years. This landmark moment comes in two Parts, with two covers.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
Events
The Nigerian novelist’s debut Such a Beautiful Thing to Behold is forthcoming on May 1, from Little A.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
Other African writers participating include Laila Lalami, Ousman Umar, Tochi Onyebuchi, and Leila Slimani.
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
Also participating are the Nigerian writer Femi Kayode, the South African writer Zukiswa Wanner, and Doek editor Remy Ngamije.
By Doek! Magazine
Opportunities
Three short story authors will be paired with experienced screenwriters to produce scripts.
By Engaging Borders Africa
The series is now open to submissions.
By 20.35 Africa
The 2022 prize will consider poetry books.
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
Community
The podcast, with co-host Emeka Onyeagwa, is a “deep and often entertaining insight into Nigerian current affairs and culture.”
By Emmanuel Esomnofu
For Valentine’s Day, we asked 28 writers—deep readers and consumers of art—to share the literary, cinematic, musical, and life stories that affect them. They opened up beautifully.
By Open Country Mag
Ben Okri, J.M. Coetzee, Margaret Atwood, and Michael Ondaatje are among those urging Rwandan President Paul Kagame to intervene in the case.
By Otosirieze Obi-Young
The author of the short story collection If You Keep Digging on activism, the social power of literature, and South Africa’s need for change.
By Paula Willie-Okafor
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