Zimbabwean Author NoViolet Bulawayo Wins Best of Caine Prize Anniversary Award

Zimbabwean author, Noviolet Bulawayo, has been awarded the Best of Caine Prize Award for her short story Hitting Budapest.

This award celebrates the 25th year of the prestigious Caine Prize for African Writing Award, given to the best short story written by an African in the English Language. 

This year, in celebration of its 25th anniversary, The Caine Prize announced a special one-time award, the Best of Caine Award, to honor the most exceptional short story to have won the Prize since its inception in 2000. The judges included Ugandan novelist Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and Ghanaian film and music executive Tony Tagoe, which was chaired by Nobel Laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah. 

In his speech about the award, Abdulrazak Gurnah celebrated the continuity of the prize, stating that, ‘the Caine Prize for African Writing has been at the forefront of both facilitating the emergence of new literary talent from the Continent, and honouring seasoned authors who push the needle in their approach to storytelling. It is undeniably an important pillar of the African literary ecosystem, offering not only its annual prize but also in-person workshops across the continent, and more recently, the online editorial programme.’

And in speaking on NoViolet Bulawayo and Hitting Budapest, the Nobel Laureate and Chairman of the judges said that it was a unanimous decision to award the Best of Caine Prize to NoViolet Bulawayo because they were impressed with the control of voice the story demonstrated and the superb evocation of a childhood vision.

Read this article to learn how to be an eloquent writer.

About NoViolet Bulawayo and Hitting Budapest

Born Elizabeth Zandile Tshele, NoViolet Bulawayo is a two-time Booker Prize shortlisted writer, recognized for her novels We Need New Names and Glory. She earned her MFA at Cornell University and has taught creative writing at Cornell and Stanford. Her pen name, “NoViolet” honors her late mother, Violet.

Bulawayo first won the Caine Prize in 2011 with Hitting Budapest, a story about children scavenging for food as they wander between Paradise and Budapest. The piece later became the foundation for her debut novel, We Need New Names. While the story stirred debates about the portrayal of Africa in literature, it solidified her reputation as a bold and masterful storyteller.

In her acceptance speech, the author discussed how much it meant to win the Caine Award in 2011 and the impact it had on her career. ‘ Winning the Caine Prize as an unpublished writer back in 2011 was truly the kind of defining highlight to jumpstart a career. It brought my work to a global audience, affirmed my literary path, and strengthened my confidence and commitment to writing so that finishing a first novel worthy of the recognition bestowed on me by Africa’s most prestigious literary award, my first ever recognition, was non-negotiable. Now, receiving the Best of Caine Award these many years later feels like a moment to reflect on the journey.’

Read Hitting Budapest by NoViolet Bulawayo through this link.