Beginning this January, we want to re-introduce our quarterly Olongo Talk Series, where we host writers of various genres to have conversations around relevant themes, histories, and other inspirations. We have had one such event in the past year, but we hope to make it a regular feature going forward.
On January 14, 2022, we will host a reading series with the African poets published in the current African Poetry Book Fund box set poetry chapbooks.
For years, Africa Poetry Book Fund has birthed new figures of poetry, a list which includes, Gbenga Adéṣínà, Romeo Oríogun, Ladan Osman, Safia Ehillo, Warsan Shire, and so on, many of whom have been featured in high-ranked literary magazines around the world. Each year, a list of new names is published through the beautiful box set edited by Chris Abani and Kwame Dawes. In partial promotion and celebration of how the box set continues to unveil new voices and their commitment towards the progress of poetry in Africa, we are hosting seven poets across different regions of Africa. The event is therefore scheduled in tandem with our vision to showcase the finest literary and cultural writings in the continent today.
Among the writers we are planning to host for this first edition is Tọ́láṣe Ajíbọ́lá (Nigerian) who is currently a Stegner fellow at Stanford University, Precious Arinze (Nigerian), Jeremy Karn (Liberian), Hauwa Shaffii Nuhu (Nigerian), Saradha, Edil Hassan (Somali-American), Kọ́láwọlé Samuel Adébáyọ̀ (Nigeria).
Our interest at Olongo Africa is to promote the interest of African creative works, artists, writers, curators, and producers of culture, and to collaborate in ways to enhance their vision as it intersects with issues of the moment across African countries today. We are excited to be the platform for such ongoing conversations for writers and artists as their works engage with a global audience. We are in-betweeners and our venue will be guested by both the new and the old voices in the African literary scene today.