The 2020 Caine Prize Shortlist
The shortlisted writers for the Caine Prize 2020 has been announced today, the 19th of May, 2020. The shortlist of five includes three Nigerians, a Tanzanian, and a Rwandan; a Commonwealth Short Story Prize shortlistee, an Etisalat Prize winner, a winner of the Betty Trask Prize, and a writer who has previously been shortlisted for the Caine Prize. The shortlist was selected by a panel of five judges, chaired by Kenneth Olumuyiwa Tharp, and including the Kenyan blogger James Murua.
Of the shortlist this year, the chair Kenneth Olumuyiwa Thorpe writes:
“These brilliant and surprising stories are beautifully crafted, yet they are all completely different from one another. From satire and biting humour, to fiction based on non-fiction, with themes spanning political shenanigans, outcast communities, superstition and social status, loss, and enduring love. Each of these shortlisted stories speak eloquently to the human condition, and to what it is to be an African, or person of African descent, at the start of the second decade of the 21st century.
“Together, this year’s shortlisted stories signal that African literature is in robust health, and, as demonstrated by the titles alone, never predictable.”
The shortlist:
- Erica Sugo Anyadike (Tanzania) for ‘How to Marry An African President’ published in adda: Commonwealth Stories (2019) (Read my review of this story here).
- Chikodili Emelumadu (Nigeria & UK) for ‘What to do when your child brings home a Mami Wata’ published in The Shadow Booth: Vol.2 (2018)
- Jowhor Ile (Nigeria) for ‘Fisherman’s Stew’, published in The Sewanee Review (2019)
- Rémy Ngamije (Rwanda & Namibia) for ‘The Neighbourhood Watch’, published in The Johannesburg Review of Books (2019)
- Irenosen Okojie (Nigeria & UK) for ‘Grace Jones’ from “Nudibranch”, published by Hachette (2019)
The winner will receive £10,000, and the shortlisted writers will receive £500. Congratulations to the shortlisted writers.
