nigerian literature

Alkaline Water – Udochukwu Chidera

If I were asked when it all started, I would say it was the night after she had Somkene. In the weeks leading up to that night, Chi-Chi looked forward to having her child, decorating the nursery with different shades…

In Nigeria, Writing Queer Stories Could Make Me a Target for Murder – Enit’ayanfe Akinsaya

In a country where silence is often safer than truth, Enit’ayanfe Ayosojumi Akinsanya stands unflinchingly at the crossroads of art and danger. As a queer Nigerian writer, his decision to write stories that humanise queer people’s experiences in a society…

A Place Where the Sun Refuses to Shine – Ogbebute Emmanuel

Far and beyondthe horizon of comfortInto a jungle of huddle, puzzles and struggles.A place where the sun refuses to shineits golden ray upon the eyes of the foresighted.A place where souls are painted with stains of pain.Goals are ornamented with…

7 Best African Memoirs that Moved the World

African Memoirs are one of the most significant genres in African literature. Their intimate and raw personal accounts set them apart from other genres. African memoirs provide insight into the lives of people who influenced the world as well as…

Going Mad in Nsukka – James-Ibe Chinaza

Going Mad in Nsukka Mọ́renikeji, God is dead, and I’ve been binge-watching videos on YouTube. I swear, I am not trying to be a woke babe. The world is made of blood, and we are all gut-deep lacerations, asymmetrical axes,…

Shore-gazing – Praise Osawaru

Praise Osawaru (he/him) is a writer of Bini descent. A Best of the Net, Pushcart Prize, and Nina Riggs Poetry Award nominee….

How to Tell My Body I Love You – JoeMario Umana

after Georgia Ifunaya’s Self-Love  running waterfrom the showerbecomes hands& crawl my skinlike cover crops over soil, planting a million pimples on my body—a land fertilewith want. I slide into the tunnelof my left palm’s indexand thumb, slippery like okra’s drawmade from soap and water. this…

Thoughts about Tension – Blessing Obiahu

Tension should not be the umbrella word for that jolt that reverberates through your bones and skin when you brush a live wire on a day IKEDC forgets to flick the switch off in your zone because it does more…

Osholonge – Onoberhie Janet Ojevwe

A street divided by both the doers and the saintsA street divided by the houses: dilapidated and well structured Divided by different tongues, practices and beliefsTime to time, blue and red sirens come visiting With full force, taking into captivity the doers…

Two Poems by Mercy Musa

A Body Performing a Disappearing Act Like lace dipped in vinegar sorrowthe nature of my narcissism is translucent,this body, almost transparent, almost fading to nothingthis skin, almost disappearing, almost syncing to dust If only I could hold light in the…