In December last year, I wrote a blog about The Folio Prize, the first major English language book prize open to writers from around the world published in the UK. When I mentioned it the interest for me was that there were three Africans on the list: South African author Damon Galgut, Ethiopian-born Mengestu Dinaw, and Kenyan Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor. I was quite pleased for the three.
Last night the people from Folio announced their shortlist and I was even more happy as Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor is on it for her debut novel Dust (My review here). She is still in the running to be the next winner of the title Folio Prize winner which comes along with a cheque for £40,000.
This is not her first prize as she was the winner of the Caine Prize in 2013.
The shortlist in full
10:04 by Ben Lerner (Granta)
All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews (Faber)
Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill (Granta)
Dust by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor (Granta)
Family Life by Akhil Sharma (Faber)
How to Be Both by Ali Smith (Hamish Hamilton)
Nora Webster by Colm Tóibín (Viking)
Outline by Rachel Cusk (Faber)
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