African Writers' Evening @ Poetry Cafe, London: Friday 18.05.07

AFRICAN WRITERS' EVENING
Friday 18 May 2007, 7.30pm (doors)
Poetry Cafe, 22 Betterton Street, London (Covent Garden tube)
4.00 / 3.00 (conc)
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This month's AWE features two female writers - one with South African
roots, the other with East African roots. Both women represent part
of the story of Africa that other people always try to tell, label,
or construct, but nobody will ever tell the way it will be heard on
the night. Join the AWE crowd and experience the fantastic, insightful prose
of Zoë Wicomb and the sharp contemporary vision of emerging writer
Sharmila Chauhan. The event will be hosted by Ghanaian writer, Nii
Ayikwei Parkes.


AUTHOR BIOS:

Zoë Wicomb:
Born in Namaqualand, South Africa, Zoë Wicomb was educated both in
South Africa and the United Kingdom. After a stint teaching at the
University of the Western Cape, she now works as professor of English
Studies at the University of Strathclyde. Zoë is the author of
numerous essays on South African writing and culture, and of several
acclaimed works of fiction, including the books, You Can't Get Lost
in Cape Town, David's Story, and Playing in the Light. Her short
stories also appear in The Penguin Book of Contemporary South African
Short Stories, The Heinemann Book of South African Short Stories, THE
Art of the Story: International Anthology of Contemporary Short
Stories. Zoë Wicomb's work has been translated into French, German,
Italian, Dutch and Swedish.


Sharmila Chauhan:
Sharmila Chauhan was born in London to East-African Indian parents
from Zambia and Kenya. Although she is a pharmacologist, she has been
writing fiction for several years and has had work published in the
acclaimed Tell Tales anthology series. Her work focuses on the
experiences of British Asians, particularly those living in London.
She is currently working on a novel, provisionally titled Devi.


FURTHER INFORMATION
http://www.x-bout.com/awe
To reserve a place, send an e-mail to events [at] x-bout [dot] com.
We may not reply to all reservations but they are ALL registered.

ABOUT THE AFRICAN WRITERS' EVENING
The African Writers' Evening is the first regular evening held for African Writers at the UK's celebrated Poetry Cafe. It was started in 2003 by Nii Ayikwei Parkes in consultation with the Directors of the Poetry Society after he completed a residency at the Poetry Cafe and is now run by London SLAM Central.