Attempting to place African Literature amongst its literary compatriots proves to be something of a conundrum in the 21st century. Indeed, as pointed out by journalist Lucianne Englert in her article African Literature: A Topic As Vast As The Continent, “just as the single continent of Africa contains more than fifty countries and inspires unique interpretations for every visitor or student, so too does a conversation about African literature extend into a myriad of subtopics.”
Over the last hundred years, African writers have written of their lives, culture, history and myth in varying styles and forms. Yet until relatively recently, the majority of these works have remained unknown and uncelebrated amongst their own people. Globally however, modern African writers have been published, and their translated works have sold convincingly. However few works by African writers are actually available to those living in the countries being written about.
