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By Henry Akubuiro and Damiete Braide
Since 2014, The Nigeria Prize for Literature, sponsored by Nigeria LNG, has become the biggest literary competition in Nigeria and one of the most glamorous on the African continent and worldwide. Valued at $100,000, it has proved to be a life changing prize for its winners and an avenue for global recognition.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 prize, meant for prose fiction, was shifted to this year. Early this week, the Advisory Board for The Nigeria Prize for Literature announced a longlist of 11 writers drawn from 202 books in the running for the current edition of the prize.
The 11 books on the longlist include Delusion of Patriots by Obianuju V. Chukwuorji; Give Us Each Day by Samuel Monye, Imminent River by Anaele Ihuoma, In The Name of Our Father by Olukorede S. Yishau; Mountain of Yesterday by Tony Nwaka; Neglected by Lucy Chiamaka Okwuma; The Colours of Hatred by Obinna Udenwa, The Girl with The Louding Voice by Abi Dare, The Return of Half-Something by Chukwudi Eze,The Son of The House by Cheluchi Onyemeluk we-Onuobia, and Your Church My Shrine by Law Ikay Ezeh
The list was presented by the Chairman, Panel of Judges, Professor Toyin Jegede, a professor of Literature in English at the University of Ibadan. The other judges are Prof. Tanimu Abuba kar and Dr Solomon Azumu rana.
In arriving at the longlist, the judges described the books as fresh approaches to looking at issues, using new and exciting narrative strategies, techniques and well-written organic plots to present topical discussions in realistic ways.
They further stated that there had been a visible improvement in writing skills and commended NLNG for giving writers the platform to blossom and experiment.
The Chairperson of the prize’s Advisory Board, Professor Aka chi Adimora Ezeigbo, expressed her appreciation to the judges for a thorough job in selecting the shortlist. She stated that excellence was the watchword of the prize, adding that the onus was on the Advisory Board to continue in the tradition that was hand ed to them by the past Board.
Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism (also sponsored by NLNG), for which four entries were received in 2020. The literary criticism prize carries a monetary value of N1 million.
The Nigeria Prize for Literature rotates yearly among four literary categories: prose fiction, poetry, drama, and children’s literature. A shortlist of three is expected in September, and a winner will be announced by the Advisory Board in October.
From the submission of the judges, the final shortlist of three and the eventual winner of the prize will be based on the writer (s) whose inventiveness, style, topicality and quality are considered extraordinary.
