Zimbabwean writer NoViolet Bulawayo has won the Best of Caine award, an honorary prize celebrating a story from past winners of the Caine Prize for African Writing, to mark its 25th anniversary. The prize was given for a short story praised by judges for its \u201cpowerful language, distinctive tone of voice, and bold, compelling storytelling\u201d.<\/p>\n
Hitting Budapest<\/a>, which won<\/a> the 2011 Caine prize, follows a group of six children who sneak from their shantytown, Paradise, into an affluent neighbourhood, Budapest, to steal guavas. First published in the Boston Review, it examines poverty, social and economic inequalities, and the dreams of children.<\/p>\n \u201cBudapest is like a different country. A country where people who are not like us live,\u201d says the narrator, a nine-year-old girl called Darling. \u201cBudapest is big, big houses with the graveled yards and tall fences and durawalls and flowers and green trees, heavy with fruit that\u2019s waiting for us since nobody around here seems to know what fruit is for. It\u2019s the fruit that gives us courage, otherwise we wouldn\u2019t dare be here.\u201d<\/p>\n Speaking after receiving the award at the inaugural Words Across Waters: Afro Lit Fest at the British Library in London today, Bulawayo said winning the Best of Caine award 14 years after her Caine prize<\/a> success \u201cfeels like a moment to reflect on the journey\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWinning the Caine prize as an unpublished writer back in 2011 was truly the kind of defining highlight to jumpstart a career,\u201d she said. \u201cIt brought my work to a global audience, affirmed my literary path, and strengthened my confidence and commitment to writing, so that finishing a first novel worthy of the recognition bestowed on me by Africa\u2019s most prestigious literary award \u2013 my first ever recognition \u2013 was non-negotiable.\u201d<\/p>\n Bulawayo was announced as the winner by Ellah Wakatama, the chair of the Caine prize.<\/p>\n The judging panel for the Best of Caine award was headed by author and Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah<\/a>, and featured novelist and short story writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi<\/a> and film producer Tony Tagoe<\/a>.<\/p>\n Bulawayo<\/a> was born and raised in Zimbabwe and moved to the US when she was 18.<\/p>\n Hitting Budapest came about as she was working on a book, and it served as the first chapter of her critically acclaimed debut novel, We Need New Names<\/a>, which was shortlisted for the Booker prize in 2013 \u2013 a first for a Black African woman \u2013 and the Guardian First Book award<\/a>.<\/p>\n Her second novel, Glory<\/a>, a satire about the fall of an oppressive regime inspired by the coup against Robert Mugabe, was shortlisted for the 2022 Booker prize<\/a>.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com<\/a> to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Bulawayo currently teaches at Cornell University.<\/p>\n The Caine prize<\/a> is a \u00a310,000 award that celebrates English-language short stories by African writers. It is named after Sir Michael Caine<\/a>, a longtime chairperson of the Booker prize management committee.<\/p>\n Since it was founded in 2000, the annual prize has recognised 25 winners from 10 different countries. Other past recipients include Kenyan Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor<\/a>, Nigerian Helon Habila<\/a> and South African Nadia Davids<\/a>.<\/p>\n