New Novels In African Literature Today

This work discusses the validity of the perception that the new generation of African novelists is different in vision, style and worldview from the older generation. The 13 papers have been carefully selected to highlight the contention that the previous generation made culture-conflict their sole theme.

Since the second half of the twentieth century, no single phenomenon has marred the image and development of Africa more than senseless fratricidal wars which rapidly followed the political independence of nations. This issue of African Literature Today is devoted to studies of how African writers, as historical witnesses, have handled the recreation of war as a cataclysmic phenomenon in various locations on the continent. The contributors explore the subject from a variety of perspectives: panoramic, regional, national and through comparative studies. War has enriched contemporary African literature, but at what price to human lives, peace and the environment? ERNEST EMENYONU is Professor of the Department of Africana Studies University of Michigan-Flint. The contributors include: CHIMALUM NWANKWO, CHRISTINE MATZKE, CLEMENT A. OKAFOR, INIBONG I. UKO, OIKE MACHIKO, SOPHIE OGWUDE, MAURICE TAONEZVI VAMBE, ZOE NORRIDGE and ISIDORE DIALA. Nigeria: HEBN

AFRICAN LITERATURE TODAY was established at a time of uncertainty and reconstruction but for 50 years it has played a leading role in nurturing imaginative creativity and its criticism on the African continent and beyond. Contemporary African creative writers have confidently taken strides which resonate all over the world. The daring diversities, stylistic innovations and enchanting audacities which characterize their works across many different genres resonate with readers beyond African geographic and linguistic boundaries. Writers in Africa and the diaspora seem to be speaking with collective and individual voices that compel world attention and admiration. And they arebeing read in numerous world languages. This volume's contributors recognize the foundations laid by the pioneer African writers as they point vigorously to contemporary writers who have moved African imaginative creativityforward with utmost integrity, and to the critics who continue to respond with unyielding tenacity. The founding Editor of ALT, Professor Eldred Durosimi Jones, recalls in an interview in this volume, the role ALT played in the evolution and stimulation of a wave of African literary studies and criticism in mid-20th century: "The 1960s saw a good deal of activity among scholars teaching African Literature throughout Africa and the world, and this ledto a series of conferences in African Literature in Dakar, Nairobi, and Freetown.around the idea of communication between the various English Departments which took an interest in African Literature. We decided on a bulletin, which was just a kind of newsletter between departments saying what was going on....it was that bulletin that showed the potential of this kind of communication... after that we started African Literature Today as a journal inviting articles on the works of African writers." Contributors to the series demonstrate the impact of the growth in studies and criticism of African Literature in the 50 years since its founding. Series Editor: Ernest N. Emenyonu is Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Michigan-Flint, USA. Reviews Editor: Obi Nwakanma

Engaging questions of language, identity, and reception to restore South African and diaspora writing to the African literary tradition

Investigates what literary strategies African writers adopt to convey the impact of climate transformation and environmental change.

Contemporary African Literature: New Approaches comprises essays that go beyond conventional literary studies to open new vistas for critical excursion. It deals not only with purely literary issues of canonization, language, aesthetics, and scholar-poet traditions that have barely been addressed directly in recent studies but also with diverse interdisciplinary topics in literature as of migration, globalization, environmental and human rights, and gender. Written from his scholar-poet position, Tanure Ojaide's essays address pertinent issues that need to be either examined or reexamined in the current condition of Africa in the age of globalization and democratization. The collection of essays also brings literature to bear on issues that have become new concerns for writers and the general African populace. It widens the scope of the African experience in literature as never before. This book is part of the African World Series, edited by Toyin Falola, Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities, University of Texas at Austin. "This book is a worthy read, and its panoramic view will leave any reader familiar with African literature, especially in the areas of poetry and fiction, with ample cause to appreciate Tanure Ojaide's literary foresight and the merits of his scholarship." -- World Literature Today

Contributors to this volume ask what are the new directions of African literature? What should be the major concerns of writers, critics and teachers in the twenty-first century? What are the accomplishments and legacies? What gaps remain to be filled, and what challenges are there to be addressed by publishers and the book industry? What are the implications for pedagogy in the new technological era? ERNEST EMENYONU is Professor of the Department of Africana Studies University of Michigan-Flint. North America: Africa World Press; Nigeria: HEBN

Imagined or actual returns to a "homeland" in African literature are examined in relation to changing concepts of identity, belonging, migration and space.

Contributors analyse the theories behind children's literature, its functions and cultural significance, and suggest the new directions this literature is taking in terms of its craft, themes and intentions.

This volume of the historic journal African Literature Today provides an overview of the position of African literature at the end of the 20th century and an examination of the directions that African literature is now taking with new and emerging writers and the growth of writing by African women. Contributors examine the influence of new concerns such as globalization and the view from the diaspora and anticipate where this might lead the next generation of African writers. Contents: Editorial Article: New Directions in African Literature: Building on the Legacies of the 20th Century by Ernest N. Emenyonu- Articles: African Literature in the 21st Century: Challenges for Writers & Critics by Charles Nnolim-Bursting at the Seams: New Dimensions for African Literature in the 21st Century by Thomas Hale- New Trends in the Sierra Leonean Novel by Eustace Palmer- Transcultural Identity in African Narrative of Childhood by Richard Priebe-The Marks Left on the Surface; Zoe Wicomb's David's Story by Kenneth W. Harrow- Mothering Daughters: The Other Side of the Story by Monica Bungaro-Transcending the Margins: New Trends in Female Writings in Africa by Iniobong I. Uko-Rethinking Nation and Narrative in a Global Era: Recent African Writing by Nana Wilson-Tagoe-A Last Shot at the 20th Century Canon by Bernth Lindfors-Reviews.