BRITTLE PAPER
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Your go-to site for African writing and literary culture. We bring you all the latest news on publications, authors, events, prizes, and lifestyle.
Madison, WI
Joined July 2010
Our 100 Notable African Books of 2024 is here! 🥳 A selection of standout fiction, poetry, and nonfiction published this year. 25 countries represented.30% debut authors.Diverse genres: speculative fiction, thrillers, memoirs & more. Full list here:
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George R. R. Martin: “This is Nnedi Okorafor. She wrote an amazing book called Who Fears Death that HBO has optioned. We are developing that to be one of the next big HBO fantasy series.” — Okorafor at the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards with friend and colleague #georgerrmartin #hbo
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We are devastated by the loss of the revolutionary Ghanaian author Prof. Ama Atta Aidoo, who passed away earlier today, May 31. Prof. Aidoo was a profound voice in African literature & a champion for women writers. May her soul rest in peace. 🕊️ 🕊️ 🕊️.
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Our anticipated African books of 2023 is up! We recommend that you use the list to plan out your 2023 reading experience. The 61 books include short story collections, historical fiction, crime thriller, sci-fi/fantasy, memoirs, & more. 🌍📚2⃣0⃣2⃣3⃣.
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A statement on the departure of Brittle Paper's former deputy editor
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African writers are constantly make grand claims about books: my book explores colonialism, polygamy, islamic radicalism, politics, corruption, etc. Maybe its time to begin writing stories about small things, delineating the micromoments and intimate spaces of African life.
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Zimbabwean author NoViolet Bulawayo’s second novel GLORY makes the Booker Prize shortlist! This makes her the first Black African woman to appear on the Booker list twice. We are rooting for her & hope she brings the prize home. We'll find out on Oct. 17.
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Zimbabwean author Panashe Chigumadzi passed her PhD defense! She now holds a PhD in African & African American Studies and History from Harvard University. Congratulations, Dr. Chigumadzi!.
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Kenya’s Idza Luhumyo wins the 2022 AKO @CainePrize for African Writing for her short story “Five Years Next Sunday,” described by the judges as “an incandescent story.” She's the 5th Kenyan to win the prize & goes home with $10,000. Congrats Idza! 🍾🥂🎇.
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Nigerian writer Lesley Nneka Arimah has won the 2019 Caine Prize for African Writing for her short story ‘Skinned’, published in McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern (Issue 53).
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Our 100 Notable African Books of 2023 list is here! We are thrilled to share some of the most enriching and captivating fiction, poetry, and non-fiction books of 2023. Shout out to all the authors and publishers for their work! Please enjoy, and share! 🥳.
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Ope Adedeji & 'Pemi Aguda Are Finalists for 2020 US National Magazine Awards, for Short Stories Honoured by The 2019 Brittle Paper Awards .
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Happy birthday to Ngugi wa Thiong'o! To honor his works, here's 5 insights into 5 of his novels by 5 African authors.
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We are thrilled to share our 100 Notable African Books of 2022 list, which features fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and children’s books. It took a ton of joyful labor to put this list together. Please enjoy and share!. #NotableAfricanBooksof2022 🎆📚🥂🙌.
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Teju Cole Joins Harvard’s Department of English as the Gore Vidal Professor of the Practice of Creative Writing .
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A poem by Mariama Bâ, the celebrated Senegalese author and feminist, has recently resurfaced after 46 years! The poem, "Memories of Lagos," was published in the Little-Known Documents section of the PLMA journal (vol. 138, no. 5).
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"These youths brought fresh blood into tired veins. It was indeed bliss to be alive, to watch youths finally begin to take the future into their own hands." . -- Wole Soyinka #ENDSARS .
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“I don’t want to be equal to men because men are not free. I want to be free. Patriarchy does not just harm girls, it harms boys too. So destroying the patriarchy is about the liberation of us all.” - @monaeltahawy
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What can we expect from DREAM COUNT, @ChimamandaReal's forthcoming novel? A thread. Pub date: March 4, 2025.Publisher: @penguinrandom .
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At 81, Ngugi wa Thiong'o Announces 34th Book, a Gikuyu Philosophical Epic Novel, 13 Years After His Last .via @@brittlepaper.
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Some delightful cat + book news! Congrats to @Nnedi and @PeriwinkleChuk1! We can't wait to read SPACE CAT.
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103 African writers from across the continent and the diaspora, including Wole Soyinka, Ben Okri, Tsitsi Dangarembga, and Nuruddin Farah share their reactions to Tanzanian novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah winning the Nobel Prize in Literature.
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Warsan Shire’s poetry is featured in #BlackIsKing while Yrsa Daley-Ward is one of the writers of the film. Their work is at the core of Beyoncé’s exploration of African and Diaspora cultures.
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The Zulu edition of Franz Fanon's THE WRETCHED OF THE EARTH is now available from @inkanibooks!. Fanon's book is one of the most influential works of decolonial and Marxist thought. It was translated from English by South African author Makhosazana Xaba.
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African Studies Association of Africa Establishes the Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award, for Conceptually Innovative Books on the Global African World .via @@brittlepaper.
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Brittle Paper's 2022 ACTIVIST OF THE YEAR goes to Tsitsi Dangarembga ( @EfieZethu ) for her brave fight against injustice and her demand for government reform. She is an award-winning Zimbabwean novelist, playwright, filmmaker, and human rights activist.
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The 2021 #NobelPrizeLiterature has been awarded to Tanzanian novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah. Gurnah is an African literary giant and author of 10 books. He is the 5th laureate from Africa, after Albert Camus (1957), Wole Soyinka (1986), Nardine Gordimer (1991), and J.M Coetzee (2003)
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Ber Anena's THE LIES WE TELL FOR AMERICA was recently acquired by Flatiron Books in a six-figure deal!. Anena is the winner of the 2018 Wole Soyinka prize and has been published in The Atlantic, the New Daughters of Africa anthology, and more.
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I just read Chimamada's feminist manifesto. I screamed so loud I almost lost it. It's b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.
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🎉 Exciting News! Nigerian novelist @ayobamiadebayo's A SPELL OF GOOD THINGS is longlisted for the @TheBookerPrizes 📚🌟 As the only African on the longlist, let's celebrate her and wish her the best on her journey to the shortlist! 🥳📖 #BookerPrize .
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Nigerian novelist and filmmaker Biyi Bándélé died on August 7. We compiled farewell messages from 100 African writers on how he touched their lives and impacted the world. We wanted to send him off with a resounding chorus of love and goodwill! 🤍🕊️🤍🕊️.
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Today we're honoring the life of Obinna Charles Emeka, a Nigerian writer who died at the age of 27 on April 2. We published his work just last year. He was a treasured member of our writing community. Join us in sending him love + goodwill. RIP 🕊️🕊️🕊️.
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Presenting (drumroll plz) Brittle Paper's new logo! We turn 10 later this year, & we're kickstarting our celebrations with this unveiling of our brand new logo. Thank you, dear Brittle Paper followers and readers, for all your support! . (P.S. More celebrations to come soon!)
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Yes this is happening. Wole Soyinka’s First Novel in nearly half a century. The 524-page novel will be published by Bookcraft. #ChroniclesoftheHappiestPeopleonEarth.
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Chimamanda Adichie's beautiful poetic farewell to Buchi Emecheta.
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Ntsika Kota MAKES HISTORY as the first Eswatini writer to win a Commonwealth Short Story Prize. He wins the Africa prize for the story “and the earth drank deep." Kota's win brings visibility to Eswatini literature. We're incredibly proud of him! 🍾💖🎇🇸🇿.
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Chimamanda Adichie Will Moderate Michelle Obama's Book Event at Southbank Center
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Hey fam! We have some big news! We've expanded Brittle Paper to include an online learning platform for writers, called THE WRITING ROOM. We offer free masterclass videos on fiction writing by some of the best in the industry! .
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At 81, Ngugi wa Thiong'o Announces 34th Book, a Gikuyu Philosophical Epic Novel, 13 Years After His Last .
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To commemorate our 10-year anniversary, we are publishing an AFRICANFUTURISM anthology featuring stories by @Nnedi @TendaiHuchu @dilmandila @rafeeeeta @D_slays_dragons @TlotloTsamaase @mazinwonwu. @mame_bougouma with @WTalabi as editor. 🚀🚀🛸🛸🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿
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2010: Founded Brittle Paper, while a PhD student at @DukeU.2016: Among "100 Most Influential Africans" by @NewAfricanMag.2018: One of @OkayAfrica's "100 Women".Taught at @MarquetteU.Happy birthday to Ainehi Edoro, Assistant Professor of Literature at @UWMadison @uwmadisonafrica!
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Brittle Paper's 2022 SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER OF THE YEAR goes to Nigerian digital content creator and book connoisseur Amyn Bawa-Allah, a.k.a @Lipglossmaffia for her use of social media to foster community around African books. 💐💐💐
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So you've binge-watched Queen Sono and wish you could have more. Here's what you can read to sate that craving.
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Nnedi Okorafor plays the role of a famous writer in Season 4 of ADA TWIST, SCIENTIST. Ada Twist is an inquisitive 8-year-old Black scientist who questions everything she encounters: a ticking clock, the hairs in her dad’s nose, and more.
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"I am a dirty little room with spiders in the corner of my skull.” --- Wopko Jensma . #AfricanAvantegarde #SouthAfricanLiterature.
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Zukiswa Wanner is the 2020 African Literary Person of the Year. She's done so much to advance African literary culture in the midst of a global pandemic. Thanks to @yomotoso, @thando_mgqo, and @jamesmurua for contributing to the eulogy. 🎊🎊🎊🎊🎊🎊🎊.
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Innocent Chizaram Ilo emerges winner of the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize (Africa). Congrats to the youngest-ever writer to be awarded the prize!
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Damilare Kuku (@thedamilarekuku), an actress and author of the short story collection NEARLY ALL THE MEN IN LAGOS ARE MAD, is releasing her debut novel! The book, ONLY BIG BUMBUM MATTER TOMORROW, will be published in 2024 by way of @HarperViaBooks.
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📣 Exciting news! The AKO @CainePrize has announced the 2024 shortlist!. 🇳🇬 @UcheAnne, @SamuelKerubu, @PemiAguda.🇬🇭 @tryphena_yeboah .🇿🇦 Nadia Davids .🇿🇼 Honorable mention: Yvette Ndlovu. £10,000 prize: Winner announced on 17th Sept. Congrats to all! .
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Adichie's Nigerian Publisher is Releasing Box Sets of New Wax-Print Cover Designs
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Congrats to Nigerian poet Abu Bakr Sadiq (@bakronline) who won the 2023 Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets (@AfricanPoetryBF) for his collection LEAKED FOOTAGES. Sadiq will receive a $1000 prize & his book will be published by the @UnivNebPress!.
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🌹 In Loving Memory of Prof. Ama Ata Aidoo 🌹 . To the incredible 100 contributors, thank you for this beautiful send-off! These many voices raised in chorus is a powerful celebration of a beloved writer and now, cherished ancestor.
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Nora Roberts Releases Statement on Tomi Adeyemi's Plagiarism Accusation
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That's the face you make when you're about to dismiss an entire field of study. --- "Post colonial theory? I don’t know what it means. I think it’s something that professors made up because they needed to get jobs."
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Pemi Aguda are among winners of the 2022 O. Henry Prize, one of the world’s most prestigious literary honors for a short story published in an American journal/outlet. 2 generations of African writers holding space! .
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The statement actually doesn't bother me at all. There is no rule that every African writer must care about post-colonial theory. I'm just curious about the politics behind discrediting an intellectual community that has been your ally from day one.
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If destroying all the maps known.would erase all the boundaries.from the face of this earth.I would say let us.make a bonfire.to reclaim and sing.the human person. S.Afr. Nat'l Poet Laureate Keorapetse Kgositsile would've been 81 yrs old today. His poems live on!
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Cyprian Ekwensi's The Passport of Mallam Ilia Gets Animation Movie | Watch Teaser via @@brittlepaper.
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The Brittle Paper Award for Fiction, 2019 - Ellah Wakatama Allfrey @epwa66, Chair of The Caine Prize, announces the shortlist . #BPAwards19 #BrittlePaperAwards19 #The5Shortlists
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Wole Soyinka's first novel in 48 years is out! Check out these pics from the book launch.
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Announcing the 50 Notable African books of 2020! Check out the list here:
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Nigerian writer Adams Adeosun is a WICW fellow! Adeosun's prestigious fellowship includes a stipend of at least $40,000 and a nine-month appointment at UW-Madison to support them as they work on their book-length manuscript. Congratulations! 🎉 .
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🎉 Congrats to the four 2023 Morland Writing Scholars: Rafeeat Aliyu (@rafeeeeta), Mubanga Kalimamukwento (@UtushimiTwandi), Kiprop Kimutai (@Tirobon), and Remy Ngamije (@remythequill). Each scholar will receive a ₤18,000 grant! 👏🏾 .
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Ukamaka Olisakwe's dissertation THE THINGS THEY KNEW is a work of historical fiction spanning from the 1890s to 2010s Nigeria. Her dissertation reimagines life in the 1890s and recounts revolutionary decisions the Igbo made while navigating colonization.
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Congratulations to Mubanga Kalimamukwento (@UtushimiTwandi) who has won the 2024 Drue Heinz Literature Prize! Kalimamukwento will receive a $15,000 cash prize and her short story collection, "Obligations to the Wounded," will be published by @UPittPress.
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Dr Stella Nyanzi Publishes Poetry Collection, No Roses From My Mouth, from Jail
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Literally can't wait for this to drop. Nigerian literary discourse is getting more exciting by the day. ***.Cassava Republic Unveils Anthology Cover for "She Called Me Woman: Nigeria's Queer Women Speak"
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Renowned Nigerian author Obinna Udenwe's (@obinnaudenwe1) book, YEARS OF SHAME, has been acquired by @PurpleShelves for 5 million naira! 🎉. The acquisition marks one of the largest book deals in Nigerian publishing history. Congratulations! 👏 .
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Ayobami Adebayo studied at Obafemi Awolowo University. Her 2017 debut novel, STAY WITH ME, won the 9mobile Prize for Literature and the Prix Les Afriques. Her second novel, A SPELL OF GOOD THINGS, was longlisted for the 2023 Booker Prize.
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The 100 Notable African Books of 2023 list includes works from 26 African countries, featuring Western Sahara, Mauritius, & the Benin Republic for the first time. Forty percent of the authors are debuting, indicating a significant influx of fresh voices.
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Calling Black women writers! @CassavaRepublic has launched a new $30,000 manuscript prize! 🏆 The award’s mission is to reward and publish emerging and established Black women writers from across Africa and the Afro-diaspora. 🗓️ Deadline: March 31, 2024.
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Nigerian author Biyi Bandele passes on at 54. He died on Aug. 7 in Lagos. He was working on a number of highly-anticipated projects: a new novel titled YORUBA BOY RUNNING and the film adaptation of Soyinka's play Death & the King's Horseman. RIP.🕊️🕊️🤍🤍.
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Nnedi Okorafor's Who Fears Death is Coming to HBO with George R. R. Martin as Executive Producer
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Ghanaian writer Sylvia Arthur is the 2023 Brittle Paper African Literary Person of the Year for her outstanding work as the founder of the Library of Africa and the African Diaspora (@loatad_org) in Accra Ghana. She is the 9th honoree of the award. 🌸🌸🌸.
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Congratulations to the 5 African authors who've made the @DublinLitAward longlist! They are: Abubakar Adam Ibrahim (Nigeria), Sharon Dodua Otoo (Ghana), Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (Ghana), Chidi Ebere (Nigeria), and Mia Couto (Mozambique). 🎉 🌍 .
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#2018MilesMorlandWritingScholarships Fiction scholarship: £18,000, Nonfiction scholarship: £27,000: If you need financial support to help you finish that manuscript you've been working on, do yourself a favor. Apply!
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A student asks how Adichie is balancing her work with the responsibilities of motherhood. Adichie responds:
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Congratulations to all the winners - Namwali Serpell (Essays) @namwalien, Ojo Taiye (Poetry), @ojo_poems, Simone Haysom (Creative Non Fiction) @simonehaysom, Ope Adejeji (Fiction) @OpeAdedeji and Cheswayo Mphanza & Nkateko Masinga (Anniversary Award) .
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Poet, author, & professor @MukomaWaNgugi expressed that he will no longer be giving a lecture at Makerere University in Uganda this August. In this statement, he further discusses this choice, human rights, solidarity against hate, and more.
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Tsitsi Dangarembga joins writers like Stella Nyanzi, Enoh Meyomesse, and Amanuel Asrat in being honored with the PEN Award for Freedom of Expression. Congratulations @efie41209591! .
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"As a reader, I have often felt the magic of literature, that sudden internal shiver while reading a novel, that glorious shock of mutuality, a sense of wonder that a stranger’s words could make me feel less alone in the world." . --- Chimamanda Adichie.
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We are thrilled to share that Prof. @kwamedawes is Brittle Paper's 2022 LITERARY PERSON OF THE YEAR for his work on building institutional support for African poetry. Dawes, one of the founders of @AfricanPoetryBF, is Professor of English at @UNLincoln.
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I am visiting the Tutuola collection at The Harry Ransom Center in Austin. Here is the original holographed manuscript of the Palmwine Drinkard. For the next five, days I will be looking through Tutuola’s manuscripts, letters, papers, etc.
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👏🏾👏🏾Congrats to Ethiopian writer @meronhadero for winning the 2021 AKO @caineprize for the story "The Street Sweeper." Hadero makes history as the first Ethiopian to win the prize in its 21-year history. The judges said the story was “superbly crafted.”.
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Yaa Gyasi's Homegoing is now mandatory reading at Stanford University. congrats to her!.
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Celebrating black intellectual love. Adichie and Coates at the AWP Conference & Bookfair
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The 2024 Brittle Paper Literary Excellence Awards are here! . 🏆 Othuke Ominiabohs of @masobebooks is our LITERARY PERSON OF THE YEAR for changing the game on the business of Nigerian publishing—117 authors, 100+ titles, & 100K+ books sold in 5 years! .
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Abdulrazak Gurnah’s @NobelPrize win is monumental, but the collective joy it brings is nearly as significant as the win itself. These responses attempt to capture this shared experience and, in the process, say something that truly meets the moment.
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Calling all writers! 📣. The 2025 @afritondo Short Story Prize is seeking submissions on the theme of "masks—" whether spiritual, psychological, or social, broad interpretations are welcome! Winners will receive a cash prize and opportunity for publication.
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The Yoruba translation of The Palmwine Drinkard. Not sure if this is the one he wrote before he drafted the English version of the book.
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Binyavanga Wainaina, Bestselling Author, Queer Icon, and Great Literary Influencer, Passes on at 48 .via @@brittlepaper.
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