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The
second Book Party of the Committee for Relevant Arts (CORA) will hold
on Sunday, August 1, 2010 at Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The first edition
of the event held last year when the group hosted a forum featuring the
nine writers on the long list of the 2009 edition of the NLNG Prize for
Literature.

This edition will
involve the 11 writers on the list released by organisers of the Prize
last week and will feature readings, reviews and discussions on the
works.

The objective of
the party, according to a statement from the organisers, “is to enable
the public, especially the Arts and culture Community and the media,
have an opportunity to encounter the finalists (and their works) in the
$50,000 Nigeria Literature Prize — before the shortlist of three is
announced around mid-August.”

The late Esiaba
Irobi (‘Cemetery Road’) and 10 living ones are the writers hoping to
win the seventh edition of the prize. The others include: Ahmed Yerima
for ‘Hard Ground’; Akinwumi Isola (‘Belly Bellows’); Onukaba
Adinoyi-Ojo (‘The Killing Swamp’) and Uduak Akpabio (‘Perfect Mothers’).

Other works in
contention are: ‘Leopard Woman’ by Philip Begho; ‘Ata Igala The Great’
by Emmy Unuja Idegu; ‘Onions Make Us Cry’ by Zaynabu Jallo; ‘Queen
Ghasengeh’ by Ziky Kofoworola; ‘Idia, The Warrior Queen of Benin’ by
Irene Salami-Agunloye and ‘Broken Pots’ by Uwem Udoko.

Theatre scholars, Dapo Adelugba, Kalu Uka, John Illah, Tanimu
Abubakar and Mary Kolawole screened the entries received for this
year’s prize, which is for drama.