Two Nigerian novels, Road to the Country by Chigozie Obioma and The Incredible Dreams of Garba Dakaskus by Umar Abubakar Sidi, have been longlisted for the prestigious 2025 Dublin Literary Award.
The Dublin Literary Award, established in 1996, is a prestigious international literary prize presented annually by Dublin City Council. It honors a single work of fiction, either originally written in English or translated into English, with a prize of €100,000. If the winning work is a translation, the author receives €75,000, and the translator receives €25,000.
Each year, public libraries worldwide are invited to nominate novels for the award, reflecting a diverse range of voices and cultures. From these nominations, a longlist is compiled, followed by a shortlist of up to ten titles. The winner is announced during the International Literature Festival Dublin.
About The Novels
Road to the Country is a noteworthy story which is set in the 1960s in Nigeria. It’s the epic story of a shy, book-smart student who decides to go to war to free himself from long-held guilt. Kunle must embark on an intense recuse mission to find him when his younger brother goes missing in all the chaos. The search for his brother becomes a journey of atonement which causes him to be conscripted in the Biafran army and face his guilt all while trying to decipher the prophecies of the local seer who has marked him as an abami eda. Literary scholars say that Chigozie Obioma is on his way to becoming the next Chinua Achebe, crafting narratives that not only shed light on Africa’s past but also teach lessons that apply to the present.
The Incredible Dreams of Garba Dakaskus entails a quest through time in search of a book with odd origins which offers the reader a diving glimpse beyond the veil that shrouds our existence and tells the secrets of the alphabet. Garba Dakaskus has this mysterious relic and is being hunted by a notorious killer who a world-famous literary agency has appointed. To protect himself and the book, Garba Dakaskus confines himself to a mental institution. Within the confines of his room and alongside his fellow occupants, Garba takes us on a journey through time explaining how the book came to be in his possession and why it is so powerful.
Having a novel mentioned on an International Longlist is truly an achievement. The Dublin Literary Award puts nominated novels through a rigorous selection process and there are several criteria they must satisfy to be included in the Longlist. It is amazing to see African literature making an impact in the international scene.
Click here to see the full list of all longlisted books!
Congratulations to the authors!
