2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature: Only 2 Nigerian authored books make the prize longlist

The longlist for the 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature has been revealed and sadly only 2 Nigerian books made the list.

The longlist for the 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature has been revealed and sadly only 2 Nigerian authored books made the list.

 

The 9 books longlisted are:

Ifeoluwapo Adeniyi (Nigeria), On the Bank of the River

Penny Busetto (South Africa), The Story of Anna P, as Told by Herself

ZP Dala (South Africa), What About Meera

Kurt Ellis (South Africa), By Any Means

Paula Marais (South Africa), Shadow Self

Fiston Mwanza Mujila (Democratic Republic of Congo), Tram 83

Masande Ntshanga (South Africa), The Reactive

Chigozie Obioma (Nigeria), The Fishermen

Rehana Rossouw (South Africa), What Will People Say?

 

Heading up this year’s judging panel is literary critic Ato Quayson from Ghana, director of the Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies at the University of Toronto, Canada. Joining him on the panel are South African author and journalist Zukiswa Wanner, and one of Nigeria's best author writer, editor and journalist Molara Wood.

The judges now have the task of selecting a shortlist of three at a retreat in the Seychelles in December. The shortlisted writers will go on a multi-city sponsored tour to be announced in December 2015 and will also have 1,000 copies of their books purchased by Etisalat for distribution to schools, libraries and book clubs across the Continent.

 

The Etisalat Prize is awarded annually to a work of first fiction of over 30 000 words, published in the last 24 months and written by authors of African citizenship. Zimbabwean NoViolet Bulawayo won the inaugural Etisalat Prize for We Need New Names in 2013, and Songeziwe Mahlangu won the 2014 edition for Penumbra.

The third annual Etisalat Prize comes with prize money of £15 000 (about 5 million naira) and a fellowship at the University of East Anglia under the mentorship of Professor Giles Foden, the award-winning author of The Last King of Scotland.

Chigozie Obioma’s The Fishermen is perhaps the most high-profile debut on the list, having already been shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker Prize and winning the inaugural FT/OppenheimerFunds Emerging Voices Fiction Award. He’s also currently in the running for a Goodreads Choice Award.

SEE ALSO: Nigerian Author makes the 2015 Man Booker Prize shortlist for fiction

The Nigerian authored books on this list deserve a win and we wish them all the very best.

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