AiW Guest: Amanda Anderson Stanley Gazemba’s 2002 novel Forbidden Fruit, previously published in Kenya as The Stone Hills of Maragoli, presents a tightly woven tapestry of human experience. The narrative follows Ombima, a poor man from the small village of… Read More ›
Kenya
Event: Literary Crossroads, 29 June 2017, Nairobi
Literary Crossroads Jennifer Makumbi and Okwiri Oduor 29 June 2017, 6pm, Goethe Institute Nairobi The Literary Crossroads Series brings together African writers on the continent and from the diaspora to discuss contemporary trends and themes in literature. The June session… Read More ›
A Review of Route 234: An Anthology of Nigerian Travel Writing
AiW Guest: Jade Lee For all of the genre’s diverse geographical settings, much travel writing has depended on a relatively consistent viewpoint. For the Western reader (especially the white, male variety) there are certain expectations of where the travelogue will… Read More ›
Us Versus Them: A Review of Safe House
AiW Guest: Jovia Salifu The essays in this anthology, Safe House: Explorations in Creative Nonfiction (Dundurn 2016), address the very topics that have made Africa the centre of the world’s attention over the years for all the wrong reasons — disease,… Read More ›
CfP: 3rd EALCS conference, 24-26 August 2017, Dar es Salaam, deadline: 31 November 2016
The 3rd Eastern African Literary and Cultural Studies (EALCS) Conference University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 24th -26th August, 2017 Theme: Cartographies of War and Peace in Eastern Africa Call for Papers, deadline: 31 November 2016 The… Read More ›
Event: Book Discussion on ‘City of Thorns: Nine Lives in the World’s Largest Refugee Camp’ 27 April 2016, London
Book Discussion on ‘City of Thorns: Nine Lives in the World’s Largest Refugee Camp’ Wednesday, 27 April 2016, 7:15pm to 8:45pm Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London, WC1H 0XG Speakers: Ben Rawlence (author of City of Thorns) &… Read More ›
Event: Who I Am, Who We Are, Exhibition, 15 – 22 January 2016, Nairobi
15 – 22 January 2016, Goethe Institute Nairobi Who I Am, Who We Are is an art project which examines the idea of Kenyan nationhood and how this is embodied through our sense of identity and our everyday interactions. The project… Read More ›
Scolma Seminar: The Cultural Politics of Dirt in Africa
The Cultural Politics of Dirt in Africa A seminar by Professor Steph Newell (University of Sussex) June 10, 11am – 12pm Seng Tee Lee Room, Senate House Library, London As part of the Scolma Lunchtime Seminar Series 2015, Professor Steph… Read More ›
Saraba issue 17: Survival – now out
A quick heads up that the latest issue of Saraba Magazine is now out, and available to download for free here: http://www.sarabamag.com/the-survival-issue This issue is themed around ‘Survival’, and as Saraba puts it: “A word from the 1590s, “survival” implies the… Read More ›
Compelling narratives: stretching ‘memoir’ in ‘African lives’
Geoff Wisner sets himself a sizeable task in ‘African Lives’, to introduce the life-writing of the continent: I don’t envy this anthologist. His introduction makes the case for the long history of autobiographical writing in Africa. Wisner argues it needs to be rescued, to be… Read More ›
CFP: American Political Science Association Workshop on “Conflict and Political Violence”
2015 Workshop on “Conflict and Political Violence” to be held in Nairobi, Kenya from July 20-31 Call for Participant Applications Deadline: March 15, 2015 The American Political Science Association (APSA) and United States International University-Africa (USIU) are pleased to announce… Read More ›
Words on Teaching – “The Great War in Africa”
Africa in Words Guest Anne Samson: Ready packaged resources for those who want to explore the Great War in Africa are scarce. However, that shouldn’t put teachers and other educators off doing so as the amount of useful material on… Read More ›
Celebrating the Publication of Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor’s ‘Dust’
On 4 December 2014, in the grand setting of Marlborough House (Binyavanga Wainaina wryly explains away his lateness as a consequence of getting lost in Prince Charles’s bedroom) a polite, excited crowd gathers to celebrate the publication of Yvonne Adhiambo… Read More ›
African Languages at ASAUK 2014
As part of our ongoing series on the ASAUK 2014 conference, Rebecca Jones reports on panels on African languages in literature and in the disciplines. Papers that discussed African languages could be found throughout the ASAUK 2014 conference – including panels on Swahili… Read More ›
Africa in Words readings with Billy Kahora, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and Alex Ntung at ASAUK Conference, 9th September 2014
Africa in Words, in association with the African Studies Association UK, Writing Our Legacy and Urbanflo Creative Partnerships, is delighted to present: WRITING EAST AND CENTRAL AFRICA: ACROSS GENRES IN PROSE Readings with authors Billy Kahora, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and… Read More ›
‘Dust’ by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor – review
AiW Guest jalida scheuerman-chianda The second time I met Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor she was sitting at a round wooden table in the garden of the Kwani? office in Nairobi, waiting to be interviewed on the launch of her debut novel… Read More ›
Call for applications: P/t Project Co-ordinator, ‘The Cultural Politics of Dirt in Africa, 1880-present’
Based at the University of Sussex, School of English. Principal Investigator – Professor Steph Newell. Fixed term for 5 years, 18.25 hours per week Closing date for applications: 15 September 2013 Expected start date: As soon as possible This European Research… Read More ›
Q&A: Poet, writer and educator Warsan Shire
Warsan Shire is a Kenyan-born Somali poet, writer and educator based in London. Her poetry reads as both artistic and activist practice, documenting stories of journey, trauma and sexual violence, alienation, assimilation, transformation and recuperation. Warsan’s début book, Teaching My Mother… Read More ›
CFP: East Africa at 50 – A Celebration of Histories and Futures (deadline 30 June)
10-12 September 2013, University of Nairobi, Kenya Call for Papers East Africa at 50 is an initiative that brings together scholars, writers, journalists, filmmakers and other knowledge producers for a reflection and celebration of the Eastern African region from the vantage… Read More ›
Heal the Nation: Documentary Launch, 23 October 2011
Last month I was in Nairobi for the launch of the documentary ‘Heal the Nation’. This 30 minute film was created by Picha Mtaani (Swahili for ‘street exhibition’) a UN-funded initiative that focuses on reconciliation through ‘photographic exhibitions and debate’… Read More ›