Wananchi Opinion: It’s time Nairobians started attending literary festivals

For the longest time, Kenyans have had to live with the unenviable tag of a country that does not value reading; that they only read for exams. 

Lately though, the situation seems to be improving, with more people, particularly the young generation, taking up writing, some even self-publishing their books. This renewed culture of reading has ushered in a wave of literary festivals that were non-existent in the past.

Nairobians are slowly catching up with the new craze, however, organisers of these events need to create more awareness among the book loving masses, if Kenya has to measure up with the West, where literary festivals are the order of the day.

Not many Kenyans are aware of the fact that the prestigious Condé Nast Traveler Magazine, in 2024, listed the Macondo Literary Festival (MLF) to be among the nine Best Literary Festivals in the World. Clearly Kenya seems to be moving in the right direction, on that score. 

The 2024 edition of MLF is a collaboration of the Macondo Book Society and eKitabu and is set to take place from 20-22 September at the Kenya Cultural Centre in Nairobi.

Among the authors expected to headline the event is Nigerian Chigozie Obioma, who is currently riding high with his book, The Road to the Country (2024), which examines brotherhood, spirituality and the Nigerian-Biafran War.

Others include Kenyan-born Canadian author MG Vassanji, Janika Oza, also from Canada and Hamza Koudri from Algeria. Others are South African author Shubnum Khan, Shubhangi Swarup, from India, Johary Ravaloson (Madagascar), Jeferson Tenório (Brazil); and João Melo from Angola

The theme for this year’s Festival, The Sea is History, is inspired by a poem of the same title by Caribbean Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott. “While the 2023 festival celebrated literature of all of the African continent's linguistic currents—hosting authors who write in English, Portuguese, French, and Arabic—the 2024 edition will extend the festival’s geographic reach to the spheres of the Swahili Sea and the Indian Ocean,” says a statement from the organisers.

“‘The Sea is History’, pays tribute to this oceanic region’s historical connections with Africa that exist in story, art, technology, cultural memories, and society. From inception, Macondo Literary Festival anchor was and is African histories and futures from African perspectives in literature,” adds the statement.

“Each festival offered 18 topical sessions and three craft workshops with platforms for emerging Kenyan writers and art forms including music, film, spoken word poetry, and exhibitions.

With support from eKitabu, Macondo will, in 2024, continue its tradition of low entry fees to help make the festival as accessible as possible to all literature lovers.”

The authors

Obioma’s novel, The Fishermen, won the 2016 Los Angeles Times Book Prize (The Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction), the 2016 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work, the 2015 FT/Oppenheimer Emerging Voices Award for Fiction, and was shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker Prize. His other book, An Orchestra of Minorities, was also a finalist for the Man Booker Prize.

M.G. Vassanji is the author of ten novels, three collections of short stories, a travel memoir about India, a memoir of East Africa, and a biography of Mordecai Richler. He is twice winner of the Giller Prize (1994, 2003) for best work of fiction in Canada. Vassanji was born in Nairobi, Kenya, and raised in Tanzania.

Janika Oza (Canada) is the author of A History of Burning, winner of the 2024 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature and a New York Times Editor’s Choice. She is the winner of the 2022 O. Henry Award and the 2020 Kenyon Review Short Fiction Award.

Hamza Koudri (Algeria) is the author of Sand Roses. He currently serves as the Director for the British Council in Algeria. In 2022, Sand Roses was shortlisted for the Island Prize for unpublished African authors.

Shubnum Khan (South Africa) is an artist and author. Her 2024 novel The Lost Love of Akbar Manzil was selected as a New York Times Book Review Editor's Pick. She is a writing fellow at OMI’s Ledig House in New York and an Octavia Butler Fellow at Jack Jones Literary Arts.

Shubhangi Swarup (India) is a writer and educator. Latitudes of Longing, her debut novel, was a bestseller soon after its release in India. It won the Tata Literature Live! Award for debut fiction and was shortlisted for the JCB Prize for Indian Literature.

Johary Ravaloson is a Madagascar-born author and publisher. His English-translated novel, Return to the Enchanted Island, earned him the Prix du Roman de l‘Océan Indien. He lives in France.

Jeferson Tenório (Brazil) is the author of The Dark Side of Skin that won the PEN Translates Award in the UK and the 2021 Jabuti Prize for the Best Novel published in Brazil. Based in Porto Alegre, he is a lecturer in literature.

João Melo (Angola) is an author and journalist. He is a founder of the Angolan Writer's Association, and of the Angolan Academy of Literature and Social Sciences. His works include poetry, short stories, novels, articles and essays and have been published internationally.

Some are likely to raise issues of money, but generally, the charges are often quite affordable. One can start saving towards such festivals from early enough in the year.

For example, charges for a single day entry are Ksh.800 advance and Ksh1,200 at the gate, while a combo ticket for Saturday and Sunday will be Ksh1,400 advance and Ksh1,600 at the gate. Students, like in this case, will be charged Ksh.200 per day at the gate (student ID required).

The Macondo Book Society has, since its inception in 2019, created and curated three Macondo Literary Festival editions, namely ‘Histories, Stories, Worlds and Words’ (2019), ‘The Future of Memories’ (2022) and ‘Disrupting Home’ (2023).

Macondo is the brainchild of journalist Anja Bengelstorff and award-winning Kenyan author Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor.

- Joe Kahenya is a lover of books, arts and culture.