Poetry Wales alongside sponsors Literature Wales unveils The Wales Poetry Award 2023 shortlist. Among them is Nigerian poet, Adedayo Agarau coming in with two pieces of poetry: ‘In Iowa, I Dreamt Of Canoes’ and ‘Oregon Nocturnal’.
Adedayo Agarau is Nigerian poet, essayist and art administrator. Agarau is a member of the UnSerious Collective. He is the editor-in-chief of Agbowó, an African literary magazine. He was a founding editor at IceFloe Press, Canada as the New International Voices editor and African Chapbook Acquisition manager. Agarau curated and edited Memento: An Anthology of Contemporary Nigerian Poetry. Adedayo is a Cave Canem Fellow and a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford University ’25.
Founded in 1965, Poetry Wales is the national poetry magazine of Wales. Wales’ foremost poetry magazine, Poetry Wales publishes internationally respected contemporary poetry, features and reviews in its triannual print and digital magazine in its mission to sustain and preserve the artistic works both inspiring our literary present and shaping our literary future. Its interests in translation, and in local and national identities in a global context, are at the forefront of some of the most exciting developments in poetry today. The magazine is open to tradition and experiment, publishing poetry from a wide range of approaches.
Thirteen poems were selected from over 1000 submissions for the Shortlist. Adedayo Agarau appeared twice on the shortlist with two amazing pieces: ‘In Iowa, I Dreamt Of Canoes’ and ‘Oregon Nocturnal’.
The three Award Winners and nine highly commended placements will be announced at the online Awarding Ceremony on 22nd July 2024.
Congratulations, Adedayo!
Bakare Oluwatobiloba
I write to educate, motivate and define history with literature. Just being me!
