Nurturing a Community: Bernardine Evaristo and Ayesha Harruna Attah (In person)
Join The London Library and Rolex for a thought-provoking conversation between Booker Prize-winning author Bernardine Evaristo and Ghanaian author Ayesha Harruna Attah as they reflect on their participation in the 2023–2024 Rolex mentoring programme. Moderated by novelist Irenosen Okojie, the two discuss the role mentorship plays in a thriving literary career, what they’ve learned from each other and what emerging writers can take away from their experiences. They will also talk about the enriching potential of working across cultures and continents, as well as discussing the West African literary scene and its ever-growing global reach.
Mentoring forms part of Rolex’s commitment to the transmission of knowledge to the next generation. It takes place alongside its support for leading arts institutions and artists around the world through the Perpetual Arts Initiative.
This event is presented in partnership with Rolex.
The talk will be followed by a cocktail reception, courtesy of Rolex, to which all ticket holders are invited.
Bernardine Evaristo is the first black woman to win the prestigious 2019 Booker Prize for her novel, Girl, Woman, Other. She is the author of 10 books exploring the African diaspora and numerous works of short fiction, poetry, drama, essays and journalism. She has received over 80 awards, honours and nominations, including the British Book Award’s Fiction Book of the Year and Author of the Year. She is Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel University London, and President of the Royal Society of Literature, the first person of colour to hold the position in 200 years.
Ayesha Harruna Attah is part of a new generation of African writers who are making their name in literary circles. The Senegal-based Ghanaian author has published five novels: Harmattan Rain (2009), Saturday’s Shadows (2015), The Hundred Wells of Salaga (2018), The Deep Blue Between (2020) and Zainab Takes New York (2022). In all of these works, she strives to create historical fiction that challenges existing preconceptions of African mores through her vibrant storytelling. Among her many accolades, Attah was a finalist in the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, long listed for the Prix Les Afriques and shortlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize.
Irenosen Okojie is a Nigerian British author whose work pushes the boundaries of form, language and ideas. Her novel, Butterfly Fish, and short story collections, Speak Gigantular and Nudibranch, have won and been nominated for multiple awards. Her journalism has been featured in The New York Times, the Observer, the Guardian and the Huffington Post and she has judged various literary prizes, most recently the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. Formerly the Vice Chair of the Royal Society of Literature, she was awarded an MBE For Services to Literature in 2021. She is the director and founder of Black to the Future festival. Her new novel Curandera is published by Dialogue Books.
NB This event will take place in person at The London Library. Please see our Event Access Guidelines before you arrive. Doors open at 6pm for a 6.30pm start. The talk will run until 7.45pm and will be followed by a cocktail reception until 8.45pm.
Photo credit: © Rolex/ Arnaud Montagard
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