THE CAINE PRIZE
The Caine Prize for African Writing is named in memory of the late Sir Michael Caine, former Chairman of Booker plc. He was Chairman of Africa 95, and Chairman of the Booker Prize management committee for almost 25 years.
The first prize was awarded in 2000, at the Zimbabwe International Book Fair 2000 in Harare, and the 2001 Prize at the Nairobi Book Fair in September 2001 The winner is announced at a dinner in Oxford in July, to which the shortlisted candidates are all invited. This is part of a week of activities for the candidates, including bookreadings, booksignings and press opportunities.
LATEST NEWS - 2009 winner announced
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Nigeria’s EC Osondu has won the 2009 Caine Prize for African Writing, described as Africa’s leading literary award, for ‘Waiting’ from Guernicamag.com, October 2008. The Chair of Judges, New Statesman Chief Sub-Editor Nana Yaa Mensah, announced EC as the winner of the £10,000 prize at a dinner held this evening (Monday 6 July) at the Bodleian Library in Oxford. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Prize.
Nana Yaa Mensah said “a tour de force describing, from a child’s point of view, the dislocating experience of being a displaced person. It is powerfully written with not an ounce of fat on it – and deeply moving.”
EC Osondu was born in Nigeria and worked as an advertising copywriter for many years before moving to New York to study for his MFA in creative writing at Syracuse University. He has won the Allen and Nirelle Galson Prize for Fiction and his story 'A Letter from Home' was judged one of 'The Top Ten Stories on the Internet’ in 2006. In 2007 his story 'Jimmy Carter's Eyes' was shortlisted for the Caine Prize. He is now at Providence University.
Read the full press release here...
ENTER THE 2010 PRIZE
The award is made in July each year and deadline for submissions is 31st January.
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10th ANNIVERSARY TOUR
This year the Caine Prize celebrates its 10th year with an anniversary tour throughout the UK . For more details, including dates and venues click the link below.
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BUY "WORK IN PROGRESS"
Buy the New Internationalist book that features all five of the shortlisted stories for this year’s prize.
Buy it here...
copyright 2009 The Caine Prize