Literary voices from across Africa will gather in the UAE this month for the second edition of Sharjah Festival of African Literature.
Running from January 14 to 18 at University City of Sharjah, the festival is organised by Sharjah Book Authority and will feature panel discussions and book readings exploring African literature, past and present.
The programme focuses on oral storytelling, emerging voices, illustration, visual storytelling, the relationship between literature and music, dance and the environment, as well as on African cities as centres of narrative expression.
Here are the writers confirmed to attend.
Lemn Sissay, the British-Ethiopian poet, writer and playwright, widely regarded as a leading contemporary voice in spoken word and narrative literature, best known for his memoir My Name Is Why (2019).
Zimbabwean novelist and scholar Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, who won the Best International Fiction Book award at last year’s Sharjah International Book Fair for The Creation of Half-Broken People.
Tsitsi Dangarembga, the Zimbabwean author of the Tambudzai Trilogy, whose final entry, This Mournable Body (2018), was longlisted for the Booker Prize.
Nahida Esmail, the Tanzanian author and poet known for her work in young adult and children’s literature, including the novels Living in the Shade: Aiming for the Summit and The Detectives of Shangani.
British-Tanzanian writer and cultural activist Richard Mabala, whose work spans educational literature and young adult fiction in both English and Kiswahili.
Nigerian-American author Sefi Atta whose body of work includes novels, short stories, theatre and children’s literature.
Ugandan writer and filmmaker Dilman Dila, author of the speculative fiction collection A Killing in the Sun (2014).
Ugandan author Beatrice Lamwaka, best known for her short story Butterfly Dreams.
Elsewhere, young adults and children can take part in a variety of workshops, including sessions on African jewellery-making, poetry and storytelling. Food enthusiasts can also look forward to engaging culinary sessions.
Sharjah Festival of African Literature is from January 14 to 18; entry is free
