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The winners of the 2011 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize were announced today in Sydney in an exciting climax to this year's final programme. Critically acclaimed international literary titles for Best Book and Best First Book were awarded to:

Best Book Winner – The Memory of Love, Aminatta Forna (Sierra Leone)

The judges praised The Memory of Love for its risk taking, elegance and breadth. A poignant story about friendship, betrayal, obsession and second chances – the novel is an immensely powerful portrayal of human resilience. The judges concluded that The Memory of Love delicately delves into the courageous lives of those haunted by the indelible effects of Sierra Leone’s past and yet amid that loss gives us a sense of hope and optimism for their future. Forna has produced a bold, deeply moving and accomplished novel which confirms her place among the most talented writers in literature today.

Best First Book Winner – A Man Melting, Craig Cliff (New Zealand)

The judges chose this highly entertaining and thought provoking collection of short stories for their ambition, creativity and craftsmanship. Confidently blending ideas that frequently weave outlandish concepts with everyday incidents, the prose is skilfully peppered with social observations that define the world we live in. The eighteen short stories are truly insightful and amplify many of the absurdities around us, reflecting our own expectations, fears and paranoia on the big questions in life. This book is of the moment, and is rightly at home on a global platform. Cliff is a talent to watch and set to take the literary world by storm.

Now in its 25th year and supported by the Macquarie Group Foundation, Commonwealth Writers’ Prize is unique in offering both established and emerging writers the opportunity to showcase their work. The Best Book winner claims £10,000 while the writer of Best First Book wins £5,000.

For the last 25 years the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize has played a key role in unearthing new international literary names, bringing compelling stories of human experience to a wider audience. As highly acclaimed international authors Aminatta Forna and Craig Cliff will follow in the footsteps of some of the biggest names in modern fiction in winning the Prize, including Louis De Bernieres, Andrea Levy, Ian McEwan, and Zadie Smith.

For the fifth consecutive year the Macquarie Group Foundation, one of Australia’s leading philanthropic foundations, is helping to advance one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the world. With Macquarie’s support the prize has grown to reach more people around the world, encouraging wider reading across a range of Commonwealth cultures and rewarding the rising talent that other prizes often overlook.

Aminatta Forna was born in Glasgow, Scotland and raised in Sierra Leone, West Africa. Her first book, The Devil that Danced on the Water, was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize 2003. Her novel Ancestor Stones was winner of the 2008 Hurston Wright Legacy Award, the Literaturpreis in Germany, was nominated for the International IMPAC Award and selected by the Washington Post as one of the most important books of 2006. Aminatta lives in London.

Craig Cliff was born in Palmerston North, New Zealand. A graduate of Victoria University’s MA in creative writing, his short stories and poetry have been published in New Zealand and Australia. His short story 'Another Language' won the novice section of the 2007 BNZ Katherine Mansfield Awards. Craig lives in Wellington, New Zealand.

Commenting on the winning announcement, Danny Sriskandarajah Interim Director of the Commonwealth Foundation, said:

“I am delighted to congratulate, the winners of the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize 2011. In its 25th year, the Prize embodies the Commonwealth at its best. It unearths the best writing from across 54 countries, promoting dialogue and understanding on an international scale.”

Richard Sheppard, Chairman of the Macquarie Group Foundation, the supporter of the Prize, added:

"The Macquarie Group Foundation is delighted that two such diverse writers have won this year's Commonwealth Writers' Prize. For the last 25 years, the Prize has helped to bring writers to new global audiences and I'm sure once again that this year's winners will delight and inspire readers and writers around the world."

Nicholas Hasluck, Chair of the judging panel said:

“This year’s winning books demonstrate the irreducible power of the written word at a time of rapid global change and uncertainty. The standard of entries this year has been exceptional, showcasing work with strong insight, spirit and voice introducing readers to unfamiliar worlds.”

The regional prize winners are:

Africa:

Best Book: The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna (Sierra Leone)
Best First Book: Happiness is a four-letter word by Cynthia Jele (South Africa)

Caribbean and Canada:

Best Book: Room by Emma Donoghue (Canada)
Best First Book: Bird Eat Bird by Katrina Best (Canada)

South Asia and Europe:

Best Book: The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell (UK)
Best First Book: Sabra Zoo by Mischa Hiller (UK)

South East Asia and Pacific:

Best Book: That Deadman Dance by Kim Scott (Australia)
Best First Book: A Man Melting by Craig Cliff (New Zealand)

Contact Information:

Website: http://www.commonwealthfoundation.com/

Deadline: 2 April 2012

A special academic meeting presenting a flag-ship cultural practice and celebration for University scholars, researchers and lovers of culture interested in studying and experiencing unique rural/small urban communal festivals as a part of the global conversation on cultural renaissance

Organised by the League of Ogori Professors (LOP) as a Prelude to the 2012 Annual Ovia-Osese Festival

Facilitated by the Association of African Universities (AAU) and The Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan Ogori, Kogi State of Nigeria . Friday, 20 April, 2012.

Venue: National Open University of Nigeria Community Study Centre, Ogori

TARGET PARTICIPANTS

• Scholars and researchers in African Studies, history, language and linguistics, anthropology, cultural studies, women studies, African-American studies, and sociology of rural and communal studies.
• Institutes/Centres/Faculties of African/Cultural/African-American/Afro-Caribbean history Studies.
• Federal and State Government Ministries/Departments of Tourism and Culture especially senior officials involved in internationalisation of cultural activities of rural and small urban communities.
• All those interested in cultural music, dance and folklores, socialization of women and puberty development and celebrations.
• Cultural tourists.

The registration fee of USD$50 for participants from outside of Africa or Naira5,000 from within Africa includes

• Attendance at the Symposium
• Symposium bag
• Copy of the Symposium programme and book of abstracts
• Lunch and morning/afternoon coffee breaks

Language/linguistics; cultural, African, Women Studies and other invited expert speakers from the USA, UK, Africa and the Caribbean.

SYNOPSIS

Nestled snugly at the foot of three magnificent hills which rise steeply into the sky, crested sometimes by the cool and refreshing morning mist, the sleepy town of Ogori has a long and distinguished history. It lies roughly at the intersection of longitude 6° 7” E and latitude 7° 30”N. It is located at the extreme south-west region of Kogi State and shares a border with Edo State. Its uniqueness has tripartite intersections: its culture; its language, called Oko which Ogori and Magongo are the only communities on this planet who speak and understand it and; the importance of education. The Ogori people’s precocious affinity for education has produced, in relation to its size and population, the largest number of professors by square kilometre in Nigeria. (Askari, 1969; Apata, 1986; Adegbija, 1994; Atoyebi, 2010).

One of the cultural icons of Ogori is the Ovia-Osese festival, an annual celebration of the attainment of womanhood by girls whose parents, peers, friends, clans, community and well wishers celebrate this significant cultural and moral attainment. It was a taboo for a girl to get pregnant, let alone marry before her Ovia-Osese. In the olden days, if this occurred the family is ostracized and the girl loses her respect and integrity in the community (Sofola, 1986; Adegoke, 2001). The celebration is accompanied by a week-long activities which include lessons in homemaking, motherhood, music, drumming, dancing, feasting and thanksgiving services at the various mosques and churches in Ogoriland.

Over the years, the Ovia-Osese has become the flagship of the Ogori people and a major mark of the identity of Ogoriland in the global scene. The ceremony and festival have become an international event having attracted tourists from the Unites States of America, the United Kingdom, Germany and South America. Many Nigerians have made it a tourist Mecca and the MTN has supported and participated in the Ovia-Osese festival for several years now.

As their own contributions to the Ovia-Osese festival, the League of Ogori Professors (LOP) made a pronouncement at the 2011 festival that they would add and integrate an academic dimension through an international Symposium to further expose Ogori culture to the world. The first International Symposium on Ogori Culture and People marks a part of the 2012 Ovia-Osese Festival with a view to making it an annual event for scholars, researchers and lovers of culture to form a seamless blend with the community celebrations of an identity of a people whose culture has become a household of knowledge generation, teaching and learning in many parts of the world.

SYMPOSIUM PROGRAMME

International expert speakers and researchers will address the uniqueness of culture as an identity of peoples all over the world. Researchers and teachers of Ogori culture and language will present vital information about the special nature of the Ogori community and people, in relation to the visibility of the culture and language in a global context. Emerging needs and issues of honorary citizenships for Africans in diapora and Afro American and Afro-Caribbean relatives and, their impact on cultural studies worldwide will be of interest to the Symposium.

Symposium Theme: Culture: An Indispensable and Enduring Identity of a People

• Sub-Theme1: History, Sociology and Anthropology
• Sub-Theme2: Language, Literature, Women Studies
• Sub-Theme3: Music, Dance and Folklores

• Strategic development and use of culture an identity
• Achieving cultural renaissance through branding of unique festivals in rural and small urban communities in Africa
• Building partnerships with other researchers and workers in the field of cultural, women and African studies
• Enhancing the role of research and knowledge generation in the perpetuation of cultures whose existence and language are threatened by Western cultures and assimilation.
• Attracting international scholars, researchers, faculty and students.

Very limited, but excellent papers, selected by an international panel of assessors, will be invited for presentation. All those interested should send their papers, to reach the under listed, on or before Monday, 2nd of April, 2012. A turn-around time of no more than 72hrs will apply on the assessment of each paper from date of receipt. The Institute of African Studies of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria will publish a special edition of their international journal, African Notes, based on the papers presented at the Symposium.

It will be a case of first come, first accepted.

INVITATION TO ATTEND AND PRESENT PAPERS

The general public is invited to express interest in attendance and or presenting papers at the One-day Symposium. Please send your expression of interest or full paper to any of the under listed. The full Symposium programme will be sent to confirmed participants by Monday, April 9, 2012.

Participants may wish to consider attending and participating in the Ovia-Osese Festival and Dance of the Maidens on Saturday, April 21, 2012. Information on accommodation will be sent to those who are interested.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

For inquiries: secgen@aau.org, tellohio@yahoo.com, alexodaibo@yahoo.com

For submissions: secgen@aau.org, tellohio@yahoo.com, alexodaibo@yahoo.com

Website: http://www.aau.org

Updated:
June 5, 2011

The River Crosses Rivers: A Festival of Short Plays by Women of Color - Call for Submissions -06/06/2011

Word Warrior Creative WORDshop (South Africa) -06/07/2011

Job Opening: Junior Editor for Submerge Publishers (South Africa) -06/09/2011

"Mohammed — The Messenger of Peace" Essay Contest -06/10/2011

Call for Candidates: Bayeux-Calvados Awards for War Correspondents -06/10/2011

Introduction to Screenwriting Workshop (Auteur Film School, South Africa) -06/11/2011

Thinkers and Trouble Makers: Panel Discussion of Queer Women of Color Activists (California) -06/11/2011

Mixed Roots Literary Festival Opens June 11th at the Japanese American National Museum -06/11/2011

Umhlanga Life Short Story Competition (South Africa) -06/13/2011

The Guardian 2011 International Development Journalism Competition on Global Poverty -06/13/2011

Apply for the Intajour International Academy of Journalism Fellowship in Germany -06/15/2011

Call for Entries: Africa in the Picture Film Festival -06/15/2011

Call for Essays/ Creative Pieces - African Women in Motion: Gender and the New African Diaspora in the United States -06/15/2011

Call for Submissions from Poets of Color: "The Moment of Change" Anthology of Feminist Speculative Poetry (Aqueduct press) -06/15/2011

Call for Papers: Children’s Literature and Reading in and of Africa (IBBY Africa conference, Swaziland) -06/15/2011

Call for Submissions: The Black Barbie Anthology -06/15/2011

Call for Articles to be Included in the Book "Transformation of Islam in 21st Century" (University Press) -06/15/2011

Book Reviews on "Popular Fiction" and "Genre Fiction" for Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture -06/15/2011

Apply for the Cave Canem Fellowship (African American Poetry) at Vermont Studio Center -06/15/2011

Call for Papers: Fourth International Symposium of Printing and Publishing in the Language and Countries of the Middle East -06/15/2011

Reporting Regional Integration: Sponsored Course for SADC Journalists -06/17/2011

Arabic Literary Translation Workshop with Paul Starkey (London Review of Books) -06/19/2011

Amazwi Ethu South African Tales Creative Writing Contest -06/19/2011

Golden Baobab Prize (for African short story for children, top prize: $1000) -06/20/2011

Pulitzer Center Seeks West African Journalists to Report on Water and Sanitation -06/20/2011

For French/ English Writers: The Camac - Fondation Tenot Writers Residency in France -06/20/2011

Job Opening: Online Fashion Editor for 36Boutiques.co.za -06/25/2011

South African Literary Awards (SALA) 2011 -06/30/2011

Date: 1 -31 March 2012

With the participation of about 30 invited countries worldwide and over 80 events planned around the world, will take place throughout the month of March 2012 the 2dn International Poetry Festival " Woman’ Scream" will be coordinated worldwide by the Women Poets International Movement (MPI) with the support of our good-will ambassadors, supporters, institutions, etc. This festival aims to bring together men and women poets, musicians, actors and artists and others in various countries, to pay a fitting tribute to the woman during the entire month of March and extending a cry of "Enough!" to the violence perpetrated against her. "Woman’ Scream" was conceptualized and designed by the Dominican writer Jael Uribe, President and direct Coordinator of the Movement based in the Dominican Republic.

This year's calling has been translated into five languages (English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian) but has managed to include many other languages in different countries that have joined this calling, capturing a great reception in other countries not only speak Spanish as it was the case of last year festival.

The event not only for local and international poets (men and women), but there are also made from March 1st. to 31, all kinds of cultural activities such as: Music, theater, lectures, exhibitions, fairs, debates, among others. We have the support of cultural institutions, foundations, ministries, businesses, educational institutions and municipalities, as well known figures in the field of literature and art in their respective host nations.

Participating countries at the time are:

Dominican Republic, Haiti, Spain (Málaga, Murcia City, Eagles-Murcia, Granada, Barcelona (2 events), Toledo, Bajadoz-Extremadura), Mexico (DF (2 events), Puebla, Ciudad Victoria-Nuevo Laredo, Chihuahua, Monterrey, Mérida-Yucatán, Morelia-Michoacán, Veracruz, Tijuana, Jalisco-Guadalajara), Argentina (Buenos Aires (2 events), Santa Fe, Unquillo, Jujuy, Chacabuco, Patagonia-Rio Negro, Santiago del Estero and Rosario), Colombia (Barranquilla, Bucaramanga and Bogota), Peru (Lima, Trujillo), Panama, Chile (Valparaiso, Santiago (2 events), Ovalle), USA (NY, Miami, Seattle, California, Connecticut, Indiana), Guatemala (2 events), Venezuela, Puerto Rico (San Juan, Humacao), El Salvador (3 events), Cuba (Havana, Las Tunas), Ecuador (Loja), Costa Rica (San Jose), Uruguay, Bolivia (Santa Cruz), Brazil (Rio de Janeiro), Luxembourg, France (Paris (4 events), Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint-Omer), Germany (Berlin (2events)), Kosovo (Prishtina), Africa (Morocco (Larache), Botswana-Gaborone, Maseru-Lesotho, Port Elizabeth-South Africa), England (London), India, Finland, Russia (San Petersburgo), Switzerland. This list continues to grow until March 2012.

The Women Poets International Movement (MPI) has its center of action over the network in its different aspects, with thousands of fans everywhere and a direct follow up to over 350 Latin American poetesses.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

For inquiries: mujerespoetasinternacional@gmail.com

Website: http://womanscream.blogspot.com