Wednesday, September 09, 2009

Uwem Akpan - Writer Priest

... my writing, I’d say too, is an extension of the pulpit … it reaches folks who don’t care for organised religion in a different way
Nigerian author and Jesuit priest Uwem Akpan is interviewed by Grace Talusan for the Ubud edition of Quill magazine, and the piece is up on Eric's blog. Akpan's short story collection Say You’re One of Them won the 2009 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book (Africa). His stories of children caught in dire situations are set in Rwanda, Nigeria, Benin and Ethiopia.

He is one of the authors appearing at this year's Ubud Writers and Readers Festival.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

UUUUUUWEM! If you're reading this, HELLO!

It probably comes across in the interview, but Uwem is both a talented writer and one of the most magnificent, kindest souls you'll ever meet. Oh, you lucky people who'll get to meet him in Ubud this year!

-- Preeta