E.A.E.P steals the show at the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature fete

It was a victory galore for East African Educational Publishers at the close of the Nairobi International Book Fair on the evening of Saturday, 29, 2007. The company bagged a whopping five awards under the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature.

Veteran author Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye's A Farm Called Kishinev (2006) scooped the top award in the adult fiction category. For an award that has sometimes failed to get a winner in the past due to the rigorousness of the evaluation process, the fact that Marjorie's book won the award is an endorsement of EAEP's publishing standards. Marjorie is also the author of Chira, Coming to Birth and The Present Moment.

Buy here

Journalist Wanjiru Waithaka's novel, The Unbroken Spirit, was placed third under the adult fiction category. The Unbroken Spirit is the author's first published work, which goes to prove that contrary to popular opinion, we are still committed in our endeavour to identify and nurture talent even as we continue availing works by the finest and most experienced authors in the continent.

Talking of new literary talent, Kingwa Kamencu's first published work, To Grasp at a Star , delivered home the first prize in the young adults' category, which was published barely two years ago when the youthful author was a student at the university of Nairobi. Kamencu's book won the second place under the Wahome Mutahi humour award, whose results were announced at the close of last year's Nairobi International Book Fair (9 th edition). Kamencu is one of the young award-winning authors spotted by EAEP and who the world had better start watching as we continue laying the groundwork for the future literary greats from Africa. Given that the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature is the most prestigious award in the country and in the region, the results could well be a barometer on who is leading in terms of publishing high quality creative works in Africa.

Buy here

Joining Kamencu and Waithaka in the list of award-winning authors published recently by E.A.E.P is Kabaru Ndegwa. His captivating reader, The Wonderful Ball, scooped the first prize in the children's fiction category. The book comes with out-of-this-world illustrations and is a poignant and creative attempt at bridging the wealth diversity gap among children. Besides its edifying message, the plot of the book flows gracefully like a river, leaving the child wishing it could go on forever, just like any other of our children's books that we are now selling all over the world via the internet.

Buy here

Meja Mwangi's The Boy Gift , published under the EAEP secondary readers series, scooped the third prize in the adult fiction category. Mwangi's novella brims with humour and artistic subtlety, so much that Prof. Emilia Ilieva, who announced the results of the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature, paid glowing tribute to the sublimity of its rendition.

“This is a well written story, sparkling with humour, about human ambition that is as laughable as it is elusive. The greatest strengths of the novella lie in its memorably drawn characters; the fresh, inimitable dialogues; the masterfully created scenes and settings,” the Professor of Literature said on behalf of the panel of judges . Meja Mwangi's other books, which include Kill Me Quick and The Last Plague have won awards in the past.

Buy here

And we at E.A.E.P are not resting on our laurels even as we celebrate this victory. We shall continue publishing the best from Africa, just as we have done for more than four decades. We sincerely thank you all for were it not for you, we would not have come this far.

Buy all these Award winning titles online