By Akumbu Uche (Student Editor)
Award winning Nigerian authors Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Uzodinma Iweala have been selected as fellows for the 2011-2012 session at the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study, Harvard University, USA.
Adichie, Iweala and 49 other people chosen make up six percent of the applicants to the institute, which is renowned as a leader for advanced study in the Arts, Social Sciences, Sciences and Humanities.
“The 51 men and women were chosen from 800 applicants based on prior accomplishments and the project they seek to undertake during their fellowship, as well as the potential of their projects to have long-term impact,” said Communications Officer of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Karla Strobel.
She added that Adichie will spend the year working on a new novel while Iweala will pursue a new work of fiction entitled ‘Speak No Evil’.
Iweala is best known for his debut novel, ‘Beasts of No Nation’, which won him the UK Mail on Sunday/John Llewellyn Rhys Prize in 2007.
Adichie’s ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ was the 2007 recipient of the Orange Prize for Fiction. Her other works include ‘Purple Hibiscus’ and ‘The Thing Around Your Neck’, a collection of short stories.
The new Fellows will each receive an office or studio space and access to libraries and other resources of Harvard University during the fellowship year. In addition, they will receive a $70,000 stipend as well as additional funds for their project expenses.
As it is a residential fellowship, Adichie and Iweala will be expected to relocate to the Cambridge-Boston area in the state of Massachusetts.
