Arinze Ifeakandu wins Dylan Thomas prize for ‘kaleidoscopic reflection of queer life in Nigeria’

The writer took the £20,000 award for writers under 39 with his debut short story collection, God’s Children Are Little Broken Things

A collection that ‘shines with maturity’ … Arinze Ifeakandu. Photograph: The Dylan Thomas prize

The title story, arranged in 14 mini-chapters, narrates the romance of Lotanna and Kamsi, two college boys whose relationship faces external, cultural threats. Colm Tóibín, recommending the book in the Observer, said: “The characters are given great complexity; the drama lies within the self as much as it does in the relationship between the self and society”

The prize, which recognises literary works by authors aged 39 or under, is one of the most prestigious awards for young writers.

Ifeakandu’s debut short story collection, God’s Children Are Little Broken Things, features nine stories that examine queer love, family and loneliness against the backdrop of Nigerian society.

The chair of judges, books editor at BBC Audio Di Speirs, said Ifeakandu’s collection “shines with maturity, the writing bold, refreshing and exacting but never afraid to linger and to allow characters and situations to develop and change, so that the longer stories are almost novels in themselves”.

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theguardian 11-95-2023 Arinze Ifeakandu wins Dylan Thomas prize for ‘kaleidoscopic reflection of queer life in Nigeria’ 

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