(ARISE magazine, issue 9) Nairobi’s literary scene is buzzing, and much of the excitement can be attributed to Kwani Trust – a local, literary network and publisher.
Kwani Trust began as an informal group for local writers who had returned to Kenya after years abroad and were looking for a platform to showcase their work. “We returned from Canada, the US and South Africa to find the same African Writers Series books we’d grown up reading [still] on the shelves,” recalls author and Kwani Trust managing editor Billy Kahora.
Determined to move beyond post-independence issues, the group set about championing writing that
dealt with modern issues, such as changing generations, insecurity and HIV/Aids. Their project gradually gathered steam and, in 2003, was officially launched as Kwani Trust.
Since then, the group has published journals and books, mostly by Kenyan writers. About half of the contributions are local, the rest come from across Africa and the diaspora. The Trust also holds poetry readings and a book festival. Later this month they’ll publish three books – a reissue of The Stone Hills Of Maragoli by Stanley Gazemba, Tale of Kasaya: Let Us Now Praise A Famous Woman by Eva Kasaya with Jackie Lebo and Cock Thief by Parselelo Kantai – as well as a poetry anthology. And later this year they will publish Kwani 6, a short-fiction anthology of young African writers, as well as a graphic novel and a visual, collaborative narrative of Nairobi. South Africa and Nigeria may have spearheaded the continent’s literary revolution, but in Kenya the writing’s on the page – not the wall.
CARINYA SHARPLES 