Uzoma Ihejirika, Staff Writer at Open Country Mag

“I wanted ‘Love’ to be the narrator”: Roy Udeh-Ubaka on Winning the Gerald Kraak Prize

“Having grown up in a small city in Nigeria where I had to cobble communities—both queer and literary—the value is in becoming a part of this incredible anthology that makes it possible for us all to exist,” said the Nigerian writer.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Ikhide R. Ikheloa Receives James Currey Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award

The Nigerian social critic has blogged extensively on the intersection of African literature and politics.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Nnamdi Ehirim Writes from Music

The Nigerian author of Prince of Monkeys on why rap is “worthy of creative theft by contemporary writers,” and how “the exploits of young writers allow younger writers to dream bigger.”

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Tsitsi Dangarembga, Emmanuel Iduma, & Siphiwe Ndlovu Win Windham-Campbell Prizes

Each of the 8 winners will receive $165,000.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Your Guide to Damon Galgut’s 9 Books of Fiction

The Booker Prize winner is on the February 2022 cover of Open Country Mag.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Country Love Depicts Tenderness in LGBTQ+ Nigerian Life

The forthcoming short film, a love story set in Enugu State, Nigeria, is Wapah Ezeigwe’s directorial debut. “I wasn’t willing to compromise any of my artistic vision,” they said.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

On an Eastern Nigerian Campus, a New Literary Hotspot

In Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, writers are gathering to converse and perform at Eagle Nest Book Club. “It is likely we have created something that will outstay us in this place,” said the founders.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Chibụìhè Obi Achịmbá Wins Frontier Poetry’s Award for New Poets

“Part of the reality of being an international student is that one is always nearly broke,” the Nigerian writer said of the $3,000 award.

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Ore Agbaje-Williams’ Comedy Noir Debut Novel Set for 2023

The Three of Us, about a British Nigerian family, explores “questions about cultural expectations, the fine line between compromise and betrayal, and the nature of truth.”

By Uzoma Ihejirika

Arinze Ifeakandu’s Debut, God’s Children Are Little Broken Things, Dissects Queer Male Intimacy

Edmund White praised it as “the beginning of a brilliant career.” Adam Haslett called the book “heartbroken but pulsing with life” and Ifeakandu “a major talent.”

By Uzoma Ihejirika