The jury of the Prix Voix d'Afriques 2021, composed of publishers, journalists, writers and booksellers and chaired by Abdourahman Wabéri, has chosen its winner: Fann Attiki for his novel Cave 72. The author, whose work will be published on September 1 by JC Lattès, will be in residence at the Cité internationale des arts, in Paris from August 27 to October 28, 2021.
Fann Attiki was born in 1992 in Pointe-Noire, Congo. In 2011, he fell in love with poetry while attending – in spite of himself – a slam workshop initiated by the Association of Styl'Oblique Congo while strolling in the lobby of the Institu français with the sole objective of cheating the boredom of an endless afternoon. He moved to Brazzaville in 2016, devotes himself to writing and theater, participates in a book club, leads slam workshops.
Three young friends, Verdass, Ferdinand and Didi, meet every day at the Cave 72, a bar, an ideal refuge where they forget their daily lives governed by the absurd: administrative hassles, political decisions, laws, reasons for wars, love and divorces, the apparent passivity of men in the face of dictatorship... They discuss, drink, recite poems and return home without having hurt anyone. They are innocent of everything. And for this reason, a man, secretary of the National Security Council, will make them the designated culprits of a plot against the State and the President, providential guide of the nation. They become heroes in spite of themselves, forced to defend themselves, to oppose the injustice of their conviction, the heroes of their own lives and the heroes of a people who have become accustomed to tolerating oppression and who suddenly rise up, defy the army, demand the release of the three young people and the reopening of the Cave 72, which has become the emblem of the resistance.
Initiated by JC Lattès and RFI, in partnership with the Cité internationale des arts, Voix d'Afriques is a literary prize designed to bring out young French-speaking authors from the African continent. A prize to support and highlight new African literary voices, novels reflecting the situation of a country, political, economic or social news or more intimate texts.
This contest is open to anyone over the age of 18 and under 30 who has never been published and who lives in an African country. More than 14,000 people have registered on the platform dedicated to the contest. On January 31, 2020, the closing day for entries, we received 323 manuscripts, finalized by the participants. Each novel is a unique look at Africa, a reflection on history, what education allows, what dreams people have in the face of harsh powers, closed borders, what secrets they keep preciously, what are their struggles and their weapons: poetry, humor, mutual aid, imagination.
In 2020, the first Voix d'Afriques Prize was awarded to Yaya Diomandé (Ivory Coast) for his novel Abobo Marley.