A virtual book party jointly organised by the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA) and Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) will happen on Thursday, October 8.
The two-hour event commencing by 4 pm on Zoom will give the Nigerian literati and others across the world an opportunity to interact with all past living winners of the Nigeria Prize for Literature sponsored by the NLNG.
Attendees will interact with the authors and obtain more in-depth insights into literature generally.
The writers attending the party include Professor Ahmed Yerima, winner of 2005 with his play ‘Hard Ground’, co-winners of the 2007 edition, Mabel Segun (Reader’s Theatre) and Professor Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo (My Cousin Sammy).
The 2008 winner, Kaine Agary (Yellow-Yellow), 2011 winner, Adeleke Adeyemi (The Missing Clock), 2012 winner, Chika Unigwe (On Black Sister’s Street) and Tade Ipadeola who won in 2013 with ‘The Sahara Testaments’, will also participate.
Dramatist and winner of the 2014 prize, Professor Sam Ukala (Iredi War), journalist and writer, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim who won in 2016 with his novel, ‘Season of Crimson Blossoms’, 2018 winner, Soji Cole (Embers) and Jude Idada, who won last year with ‘Boom Boom’ are also billed to attend.
The late winners of the prize are 2004 co-winners, Gabriel Okara and Professor Ezenwa Ohaeto; 2010 winner, Esiaba Irobi (Cemetery Road), and Ikeogu Oke who won in 2017 with his collection of poetry, ‘The Heresiad’
Inaugurated in 2004, the Nigeria Prize for Literature has a cash prize of $100,000. It rotates yearly amongst four literary genres: prose fiction, poetry, drama and children’s literature. The COVID-19 pandemic caused the cancellation of the 2020 prize that would have been awarded for prose fiction.
