Skip to Main Content

African Literature Online: F - O

African writers, literary journals, literary awards and prizes, book fairs and festivals, literary associations, blogs, radio programs, publishers, discussion groups, university web sites and more.

F - O

farafina (Lagos) - Wikipedia Page
Magazine has closed. Nigerian cultural and literary online magazine. Short stories, first hand accounts of current (Liberia) and literary events. Interviews with artists, writers. Online polls. Based in Lagos, Nigeria. [KF] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farafina_Magazine

Farah, Nuruddin - Wikipedia Page
Somali writer Farah was awarded the 1998 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, awarded every two years and the only international literary award from the United States for which poets, playwrights, and novelists are given equal consideration. "It is widely considered to be the most prestigious international prize after the Nobel Prize, and in fact is often referred to as the 'American Nobel. [KF] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuruddin_Farah

  • New York Times, May 26, 2007, page A25. Op-Ed Contributor. My Life as a Diplomat. By NURUDDIN FARAH. His experience in negotiations with the Islamic Courts Union and the Transitional Federal Government.
     

February, Vernon Alexander
The African Studies Center Library, Leiden, Netherlands has an attractive profile and bibliography on the South African poet, writer, and literature scholar. Covers books, journal articles, chapters in books, has a photograph of the author, covers of his books. [KF] https://www.ascleiden.nl/content/webdossiers/dossier-vernon-alexander-february-1938-2002

FEMRITE - Uganda Women Writers' Association
Publishes books. Holds workshops, training, literary evenings, etc. http://www.femriteug.org/

Festival of African and African Diasporic Literatures, 2020 July 3-4
Sponsored by the University of Bayreuth, Germany.  Program. Central European Summer Time (CEST). https://www.african-literature-festival.org/

GEFAME, Journal of African Studies (Ann Arbor)
Published by the University of Michigan Library and the Center for Afro-American and African Studies, University of Michigan. A peer reviewed journal. Vol. 1, No. 1, 2004 is A Tribute to Professor Lemuel Johnson [Sierra Leonean literature professor and poet]. Has an Events in Africa section. Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. https://quod-lib-umich-edu.stanford.idm.oclc.org/g/gefame/
Articles include:

[Gurnah] Abdulrazak Gurnah
The writer/scholar, born in Zanzibar, won the 2021 Nobel Prize for Literature “for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fate of the refugee in the gulf between cultures and continents”.  https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/2021/summary/

H-AfrLitCine
A moderated electronic discussion group jointly sponsored by H-Net (Humanities- On-Line) and the African Literature Association to provide a forum for the discussion and exploration of African literature and cinema. Their web site has information on subscribing, an archive of past discussions, a listing of important events, conferences, etc.  http://www.h-net.org/~aflitweb/

Haggard, H. Ryder - King Solomon's Mines (1885)
Project Gutenberg. Full text of the adventure novel set in Africa. First published in 1885. "An elephant hunter's chronicle of his safari into the interior of South Africa to search for a fabled diamond mine and to rescue the brother of the English gentleman who accompanies him across the deserts and mountains." https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2166/2166-h/2166-h.htm

Hanzer. South African Travel Writing: Shipwrecks, Botanical Journalism, Women Travelers, Re-enactments of contact Dramas
Abstracts of journal articles, conference papers, links to poetry. Maintained by Margaret Hanzimanolis. http://hanzer.blogspot.com/

Hargeysa International Book Fair
http://www.hargeysabookfair.com/     "Book Fair Aims To Help Change Somaliland's Oral Culture" is a National Public Radio audio report on the 2016 Fair. 

Heinemann African Writers Series - Wikipedia Page
The series began in 1962. The titles include fiction, short stories, poetry, drama and non-fiction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinemann_African_Writers_Series

Herbstein, Manu - "Ama: A Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade"
Site for a 450 page novel on Ama, captured and enslaved in Ghana in the eighteenth century and taken to a sugar estate in Brazil. The novel recounts "the experience of enslavement and resistance, seen from the point of view of one African slave." Has excerpts and maps from the novel, bibliographies of related sources, links to related sites. Manu Herbstein's book won the 2002 Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Book overall and for the Africa Region. See also Wikipedia list of all prize winners. http://www.ama.africatoday.com/

Humanities Review Journal (Ile-Ife, Nigeria)
2008 is the latest issue. Published by the Humanities Research Forum, at the Department of Dramatic Arts, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.  Topics: Theatre Arts, Philosophy, English Language, Literature in English, History, Music, Communication Arts, Anthropology, Library Studies, Information Science, Cultural Studies, Sociology. https://www.ajol.info/index.php/hrj

« île en île »
"...un site pour valoriser les ressources informatives et culturelles du monde insulaire francophone." Has a section on l'Océan Indien: Comores, Madagascar, Maurice, Mayotte, Réunion, Seychelles littératures. Author profiles, bibliography of their works, extracts from works, and links to related sites. Maintained by Professor Thomas Spear and others. [KF] http://www.lehman.cuny.edu/ile.en.ile/indien/paroles.html

Illuminations, An International Magazine of Contemporary Writing
Subscription required; no online issues. Published by the College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina.. https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/3959584

  • Special issues:

  • Thirty-Two (Summer 2018): special South African issue
    Twenty-Five (Summer 2009): Featuring new writing from Zimbabwe
    Twenty (Summer 2004): 80th birthday tribute to Dennis Brutus
    Fourteen (Summer 1998): New writing from South and southern Africa--work by Dennis Brutus, Jeremy Cronin, Jack Mapanje
    Nine (Summer 1990): East and Southern African special issue, including poems and prose by Ingrid de Kok, Jack Mapanje, & others
    Eight (Summer 1989): Special South African issue, featuring Don Mattera, Dennis Brutus, & others

Imbiza Journal for African Writing
"for creative writing, criticism, academic writing and intellectual engagement for African thinkers, cultural workers and activists" Selected articles free online. Based in South Africa. https://www.imbizajournal.co.za/

International Society for the Oral Literatures of Africa, ISOLA
"...an association of scholars from all over the world who are interested in exploring the rich oral traditions of Africa and the African Diaspora" The Secretary General of ISOLA is Dr. Stephen Belcher. Has a discussion list, recent issues of their Newsletter. Established in 1991 in London. http://www.africaisola.org/

International Writing Program, University of Iowa
Usually hosts at least one African writer every year. https://iwp.uiowa.edu/

Isele Magazine
"founded in July 2020, publishes notable fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, and book news/reviews from writers on the African continent and around the world." Includes art and photography, offers literary prizes. Based in the United States. https://iselemagazine.com/

Iskanchi Magazine
Published by Iskanchi Press, a US-based publishing house for African writing. Based in Lehi, Utah.  https://www.iskanchi.com/about

Jahn Library for African Literatures / Jahn-Bibliothek für afrikanische Literaturen
"...forms part of the Department of Anthropology and African Studies at the University of Mainz and holds one of the most extensive collections of African literary texts and relevant critical sources worldwide. It provides an invaluable resource for research on African literatures in a wide variety of languages and was one of the earliest centres for the study of African literatures in Europe." http://www.jahn-bibliothek.ifeas.uni-mainz.de/

James Currey Prize for African Literature
"an annual award for the best-unpublished work of fiction written in English by any writer, set in Africa or on Africans in Africa or in Diaspora." "established in 2020 by Nigerian writer, filmmaker and publisher of Hattus Books, Onyeka Nwelue, in honour of James Currey, the leading publisher of academic books on Africa" https://jamescurreyprize.com/

James Murua's Literature Blog - now called Writing Africa. See under Writing Africa.

Johannesburg Review of Books
Includes author interviews, audio readings, awards the University of Johannesburg Prizes for South African Writing in English. https://johannesburgreviewofbooks.com/

Journal of Commonwealth Literature
Subscription required. https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/365942

Journal of Cultural Studies (Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria)
Published by the Nigerian Group for the Study of African Cultures (NIGSAC), a non-profit organisation which focuses on cultural and development issues in Africa. Based in the Department of English, Ogun State University, Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria. Has the tables of contents and abstracts of article. Payment required for full articles. From the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (London). https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jcs

Journal of Postcolonial Writing (Abingdon [England] :Routledge)
Subscription required. Formerly called World literature written in English.  https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/5734958

Jouvert, a Journal of Postcolonial Studies
Published by the College of the Humanities and Social Sciences, North Carolina State University. Full text articles on literature, African film, religious art, the experience of teaching the Theory of Education at a teachers' College in Zimbabwe in 1991, a conversation with Abdul R. JanMohamed, reviews of African art exhibits, films, etc. https://legacy.chass.ncsu.edu/jouvert/

Kalahari Review
Literary journal, includes art. https://kalaharireview.com/

[Kamanda] - Kama Sywor Kamanda
Kamanda is a writer born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

  • African Studies Centre, Leiden. Profile, video, publications list.. https://www.ascleiden.nl/content/library-weekly/kama-sywor-kamanda
  • The Poetry of Kama Sywor Kamanda. BY DAN GOLEMBESKI MAY 10, 2015. English translations of five poems.  https://intervalsignals.wordpress.com/2015/05/10/the-poetry-of-kama-sywor-kamanda/
  • KAMANDA, Sywor Kama. Site is closed. The Internet Archive has archived the site. The writer's biography, poetry, novels, essays, short stories, translations of his work. Bibliography of works by and about Kamanda. Audio of his poetry readings.  https://web.archive.org/web/20110522124215/http://webplaza.pt.lu/public/kamanda/
     

Kunapipi: Journal of Post colonial Writing
Ceased in 2012 but issues are online. "...arts magazine of critical and creative writing with special but not exclusive emphasis on the new literatures written in English." " the official journal of EACLALS - the European Association of Commonwealth Languages and Literatures." Based at University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia. https://ro.uow.edu.au/kunapipi/

Kwani? (Nakuru, Kenya)
Site has closed. The Internet Archive has archived the site. Online literary magazine from Kenya. New writers, literary criticism, news on Kenya cultural events. The first issue appeared Sept. 2002. Has the full text of, The Weight of Whispers, by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, winner of the 2003 Caine Prize. Founded by Kenyan writers including Binyavanga Wainaina (2002 winner of the Caine Prize). Based in Nairobi, Kenya.  Print issues held by Stanford Libraries.

Lessing, Doris
Doris Lessing won the 2007 Nobel Prize for Literature. This may be the definitive Doris Lessing web site - extensive bibliographies, a biography, photos of her from 1949-1994, Real Audio interviews, the full text of some of her articles, etc. There is an email list to "let people know about new and republished books, personal appearances, articles, etc. The list is non-academic and focuses on Mrs. Lessing's publications and professional activities" and is maintained by the site creator, Jan Hanford. http://www.dorislessing.org/

Liberation Journals Index
"..index covering the interwar Pan-African periodicals La Revue du Monde Noir, Légitime Défense, L’Étudiant Noir, the wartime Tropiques, and the postwar Présence Africaine, as well as the Québécois journal Liberté......originally conceived both as a public research tool and as a practical component of Meadow Dibble-Dieng’s dissertation, a comparative study that considers the various ways in which literary periodicals have served in liberation movements throughout the Francophone world." Descriptions of each journal, with references. Search by author, theme, genre (biography, interview, folklore, play, poetry, review, etc.). [KF] http://dl.lib.brown.edu/liberation/

Library of Congress. Conversations with African Poets and Writers
https://www.loc.gov/search/?fa=partof:conversations+with+african+poets+%26+writers

Library of Congress - A Conversation with Abdulrazak Gurnah, Nobel Prize winner in Literature 2021
Abdulrazak Gurnah in conversation with Dr. Lanisa Kitchiner, Chief of the African and Middle Eastern Division of the Library of Congress. May 25, 2022. 53 minutes 48 seconds. https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-10286/

Library of Congress - A Conversation with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Interview of Nigerian author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichiewith, with Dr. Lanisa Kitchiner, Chief, African and Middle Eastern division, U.S. Library of Congress. May 5, 2022. Produced by the Library's African & Middle Eastern Division. https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-10262

Library of Congress - A Conversation with Damon Galgut, Winner of the 2021 Booker Prize
Interview of South African writer, Damon Galgut, with Dr. Lanisa Kitchiner, Chief, African and Middle Eastern division, U.S. Library of Congress. May 12, 2022. Produced by the Library's African & Middle Eastern Division.
https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-10268/

Literary Map of Africa - Miriam Conteh-Morgan
Resource on African writers includes "biographical data, a list of primary works, .... selected reference and critical works, dissertations, interviews, pertinent web sites and prizes won" and more. Clickable map to locate writers by country. Has as "many emerging writers as possible, especially those based in Africa."  Miriam Conteh-Morgan was the Librarian for African Studies, French and Linguistics at The Ohio State University Libraries. https://library.osu.edu/literary-map-of-africa

Littérature africaine francophone (LITAF)
In French. Site is no longer updated. Database of citations dating from 1900s to early 2021.  Works of literature from francophone sub-saharan Africa. Provides bibliographic details and indicates which libraries (in France and elsewhere) hold the title. The web database is an extract of the full LITAF database (containing 13,000 + citations to literature and criticism) which  produced by the "Agence universitaire de la francophonie" (ex-AUPELF). Project directed by Virginia Coulon, Universite Montesquieu - Bordeaux 4 (Departement de Langues). LITAF is a member of research group 931 (CNRS): "Litteratures d'Afrique noire" directed by Alain Ricard. http://www.litaf.org/

Lolwe
Online literary and photography magazine. Began publication by Troy Onyango in 2020..  https://lolwe.org/

Mabanckou, Alain

  • UCLA Professor. Novelist, poet, born in Congo-Brazzaville. https://elts.ucla.edu/person/alain-mabanckou/
  • Interview 2019. https://en.unesco.org/courier/2019-2/mobile-africas-alain-mabanckou

[Mabanckou] Blog d'Alain Mabanckou
In French. Blog of the Congolese writer, poet. Winner of the Prix Renaudot 2006 for Mémoires de porc-épic. Mabanckou's biography, his essays. RSS feed: http://congopage.com/backend.php?id_rubrique=217 http://congopage.com/rubrique217.html

Meskot - An Ethiopian Online Literary Journal
In Amharic and English. Poetry, short stories, essays. http://www.meskot.com

Moto Books and Arts Festival
The 2022 inaugural festival was held 21st – 24th April 2022 in Nairobi, Kenya. Based in Nairobi.  http://motofestivals.com/

Mots Pluriels
Literary electronic journal. Stopped publishing after 2003. Vol 1, No. 1 includes: Le temps: point de vue d'un philosophe africain by Dr Daniel Tchapda Piameu, Le temps dans la culture Ibo ou comment prendre sa place au sein de l'?ternit? by Dr. Fran?oise Ugochukwu, L'Accident Une nouvelle de Mme Myriam Warner-Vieyra, Lire "l'Accident" de M. Warner Vieyra et reconstruire le temps by Dr Jean-Marie Volet. Edited by Dr. Jean-Marie Volet, Univ. of Western Australia. [KF] https://motspluriels.arts.uwa.edu.au/

Multilingual African Electronic Literature Database & African Diasporic Electronic Literature Database, MAELD & ADELD
Find electronic literature, video games, digital tours, etc. Clickable map, creator biographies. Maintained by Yohanna Joseph Waliya, University of Calabar. The web developer is Alex Boyd. https://africanelit.org/

Munyori Poetry Journal
Online poetry journal. Interviews and poetry. Web site based in Emeryville, California. [KF] http://www.munyori.com/

New York Times Book Reviews
Search for past book reviews from 1980 to date from the New York Times Book Review section by author, title, subject. Seaching on an African country generally pulls up one or more titles. http://www.nytimes.com/books/

Ngugi wa Thiongo
Ngugi wa Thiong'o - Official website - Biography, bibliography, news, reviews, photographs. https://ngugiwathiongo.com/
Interview with Ngugi Wa Thiong'o by Michael Alexander Pozo. 4 p. http://www.postcolonialweb.org/poldiscourse/pozo3.html

Noma Award for Publishing in Africa
Established in 1979, the Noma Award was open to African writers and scholars whose work is published in Africa. The US$10,000 prize was given annually for an outstanding new book in any of these three categories: (i) scholarly or academic, (ii) books for children, and (iii) literature and creative writing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noma_Award_for_Publishing_in_Africa

[Okri] Ben Okri - Official Site
https://benokri.co.uk/

[Okri] Ben Okri Bibliography 
Bibliography of Okri's fiction, nonfiction (including articles and essays from newspapers, West Africa and other journals), interviews. Books, articles, dissertations about Okri. Print and internet sources. Maintained by Daria Tunca, English Department, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium. [KF] http://www.cerep.ulg.ac.be/okri/index.html

One Ghana, One Voice - Poems and Poets of Ghana
"Every Saturday a new poet will be profiled with one of their poems posted alongside a personal biography." http://www.oneghanaonevoice.blogspot.com/

Onitsha Market Literature
University of Kansas - Onitsha Market Literature - Full text Nigerian market / Onitsha literature. Includes an essay on the historical and literary context; a Bibliography of the 101 Pamphlets in the Onitsha Market Literature Collection at Spencer Research Library, by Ken Lohrentz, a map of publishers, and a Bibliography of writings on Nigerian market literature : a sequel, by Kenneth P. Lohrentz. From the University of Kansas. [KF] http://www.ku.edu/%7Eonitsha/index.htm
Indiana University - Onitsha Market Literature - A list of titles held by Indiana University Library and a bibliography of books, journal articles, web sites about the literature. [KF] https://collections.libraries.indiana.edu/africancollections/onitsha-market-literature

Open Access Books

  • Folktales of Mayotte, an African island : from research by Claude Allibert, Noel Gueunier, and Sophie Blanchy /
    Author(s):    Haring, Lee,  author.
    Corp Author(s):    Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.; World Oral Literature Project. 
    Cambridge, UK : Open Book Publishers, 2023
  • 188 pages) : illustrations (chiefly color).
    Series:    World oral literature series,; vol. 10; Variation: World oral literature series ;; vol. 10.
    https://www.openbookpublishers.com/books/10.11647/obp.0315
     

Organization of Women Writers of Africa (OWWA)
Site has closed. The Internet Archive has archived some pages. Based in New York, OWWA was formed in 1991 by Jayne Cortez of the USA and Ama Ata Aidoo of Ghana. "OWWA is a nonprofit organization formed for the purpose of establishing links between professional women writers from Africa and its Diaspora." Held an October 12-16, 2004 Black Women Writers Conference, Yari Yari Pamberi.  Wikipedia page. [KF] 

Osondu, E. C. - Jimmy Carter's Eyes
Nominated to the 2007 Caine Prize Short List. "E. C. Osondu was born in Nigeria. He lives in Syracuse, New York, where he is a Syracuse University Fellow. (8/2006)" Published in the online magazine, AGNI Online, a web exclusive. https://agnionline.bu.edu/fiction/jimmy-carters-eyes/

  • Last Updated: Oct 30, 2024 8:02 AM
  • URL: https://guides.library.stanford.edu/african-literature-online
  • Print Page
Subjects: African literature