Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Loses Her Father.
Award-winning author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has lost her father, Professor Nwoye Adichie. He died on Wednesday 10th June, 2020, after a brief illness, aged 88.
Professor Nwoye Adichie devoted his life to academics where he rose to the rank of Professor Emeritus before his retirement.
Ayamba LitCast sends her sincere condolences to the Adichie family.
Netflix Naija to Make Wole Soyinka and Lola Shoneyin’s Books into TV Series.
Netflix Naija is currently partnering with producer and owner of EbonyLifeTV, Mo Abudu, to produce some Nigerian literary classics as TV series. The announcement was made in a tweet on Friday, June 12, thus:
“We’ve got MAJOR news for you today! Netflix has patnered with acclaimed producer @MoAbudu to bring you two of Nigeria’s most beloved literary classics to screens around the world
“A series-adaptation of @LolaShoneyin’s The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives and a film-adaptation of Prof. Wole Soyinka’s Death And The King’s Horseman!”
“Wait…there’s more! @MoAbudu and her @EbonyLife_TV will produce two new Nigerian Originals plus licensed films AND a series for Netflix! This na Naija!!”
We are excited and keep our fingers crossed in wait for the premiere of these classic TV series.
African Writers Conference 2020 Gets a Date.
The City of Lusaka, Zambia will host the 2020 edition of African Writers Conference scheduled for November, themed ‘African Identity’. It will run as a hybrid event (limited physical presence and live streaming) given the ravaging effects of COVID-19.
Organised annually by the African Writers Development Trust (AWDT), the conference targets writers of African descent living on the continent and in the Diaspora, and brings together writers, literary veterans, book enthusiasts, journalists, policymakers, and the youths from across Africa. The goal is to initiate a global narrative on the future of the African writer, the state of African literature, and the hope of renaissance. The debut edition was held on December 1st, 2018 in Abuja, Nigeria.
Source: African Writers Development Trust.
Innocent Chizaram Ilo Wins Commonwealth Short Story Regional Prize for Africa.
The regional winners for the 2020 edition of Commonwealth Short Story Prize have been announced. Innocent Chizaram Ilo came out tops in the African category with his story, When a Woman Renounces Motherhood.
Joining him on this prestigious shortlist are other regional winners: Kritika Pandey (Asia); Reyah Martin (Canada and Europe); Brian S. Heap (Caribbean); Andrea E. Macleod (Australia). All winning stories will be published online by the literary magazine, Granta.
The announcement was made by the Chair of the judges for this year, Ghanaian writer and editor, Nii Ayikwei Parkes. Other judges on the panel are Mohale Mashigo, William Phuan, Heather O’Neill, Elizabeth Walcott-Hackshaw, and Nic Low. The overall winner will be announced on June 30th, 2020.
Congratulations to Innocent and may the best creative win.
Chigozie Obioma Receives International Literature Award.
Chigozie Obioma’s An Orchestra of Minorities (2019) has been awarded the International Literature Award by Germany’s House of World Cultures and Stiftung Elementarteilchen. The International Literature Prize recognises an outstanding work of prose translated into German for the first time. The winning author and translator are both recognised for the prize: the author wins a cash prize of €20,000 while the translator gets €15,000.
Since its inception in 2009, the International Literature Award (Internationaler Literaturpreis) has typically been awarded to one novel. This year, the jury decided to honor all six novels on the shortlist. Reflecting on the cultural and financial impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, the jury decided that this was the year to support the work of multiple writers and translators from around the world.
Obioma is the third African author to be honored with the International Literature Award, after Teju Cole in 2013, for Open City (translated by Christine Richter-Nilsson), and Fiston Mwanza Mujila in 2017, for Tram 83 (translated by Katharina Meyer and Lena Müller).
Congratulations to Chigozie from all of us at Ayamba LitCast.
Brought to you by Ayamba LitCast.
