Elnathan John (born 1982) is a Nigerian novelist,

satirist This is an incomplete list of writers, cartoonists and others known for involvement in satire – humorous social criticism. They are grouped by era and listed by year of birth. Included is a list of modern satires. Early satirical authors *Aes ...

and lawyer whose stories have twice been shortlisted for the

Caine Prize for African Writing The Caine Prize for African Writing is an annual literary award for the best short story by an African writer, whether in Africa or elsewhere, published in the English language. Founded in the United Kingdom in 2000, the £10,000 prize was named ...

Career

Elnathan John was born in

Kaduna Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade center and a major transportation hub as the gateway to northern state ...

, in north-west Nigeria, in 1982. He attended

Ahmadu Bello University The Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) is a public research university located in Zaria, Nigeria, Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. It was opened in 1962 as the University of Northern Nigeria. The university has four colleges, three schools, 18 faculties, ...

Zaria Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...

, and the

Nigerian Law School The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up to provide professional certification to graduates of law. The school was established in Lagos under the Legal Education Act 1962, now Legal Education (Consolidation Etc) Act Cap. L1 ...

, where he obtained law degrees. His short story ''Bayan Layi'', published in ''Per Contra'', was shortlisted for the

in 2013. He was shortlisted again for the Caine Prize in 2015 for his short story ''Flying''. His writing has been published in ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', ''Per Contra'', '' Hazlitt'', ''ZAM Magazine'', ''

Evergreen Review ''The Evergreen Review'' is a U.S.-based literary magazine. Its publisher is John Oakes and its editor-in-chief is Dale Peck. The ''Evergreen Review'' was founded by Barney Rosset, publisher of Grove Press. It existed in print from 1957 until ...

'', and '' Chimurenga's The Chronic''. John's first novel, ''Born on a Tuesday'' was published in 2016 by

Cassava Republic Press Cassava Republic Press is a steering African book publishing company established in Nigeria in 2006 and headed by Bibi Bakare-Yusuf,

in 2015 and in the US by

Grove Atlantic Grove Atlantic, Inc. is an American independent publisher, based in New York City. Formerly styled "Grove/Atlantic, Inc.", it was created in 1993 by the merger of Grove Press and Atlantic Monthly Press. As of 2018 Grove Atlantic calls itself "An ...

. ''Born on a Tuesday'' was shortlisted in September 2016 for the NLNG Nigeria Prize for Literature, Africa's largest literary award it won a

Betty Trask Award The Betty Trask Prize and Awards are for first novels written by authors under the age of 35 who reside in a current or former Commonwealth nation. Each year the awards total at least , with normally one author receiving a larger prize amount ( ...

. Translated into French as ''Né un mardi'' by Céline Schwaller, it received the Les Afriques prize in 2019. His second book, ''Be(com)ing Nigerian, A Guide'', a collection of satirical pieces, was published by Cassava Republic Press in 2019. His third book, a graphic novel, was published by Cassava Republic Press in November 2019. The book is illustrated by Alaba Onajin. Elnathan John is a Civitella Ranieri Fellow. He writes a weekly satirical column for the '' Sunday Trust Newspaper'' and speaks regularly on Nigerian literature, media and politics. He is one of the judges of the 2019

Man Booker International Prize The International Booker Prize (formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize) is an international literary award hosted in the United Kingdom. The introduction of the International Prize to complement the Man Booker Prize, as the Boo ...

Awards and listings

* 2013: Shortlisted for the

* 2015: Shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing * 2016: Shortlisted for the

Nigeria Prize for Literature Nigeria Prize for Literature is a Nigerian literary award given annually since 2004 to honor literary erudition by Nigerian authors. The award rotates among four genres; fiction, poetry, drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mod ...

* 2017: Longlisted for the Etisalat Prize for African Literature * 2017: Shortlisted for the

Republic of Consciousness Prize The Republic of Consciousness Prize for Small Presses is an annual British literary prize founded by the author Neil Griffiths. It rewards fiction published by UK and Irish small presses, defined as those with fewer than five full-time employee ...

* 2017: WINNER

* 2018: Miles Morland Writing Scholarship *2019: WINNER Prix Les Afriques

Bibliography

* ''Bayan Layi'' (2013) * ''Flying'' (2015) * ''

Born on a Tuesday ''Born on a Tuesday'' is a 2016 novel by Nigeria writer Elnathan John. It is his debut novel. It was published in 2016 by Black Cat an imprint of Grove Press. Plot summary Dantala is the protagonist of Born on a Tuesday, a story about life, love ...

'' (2016) * '' Be(com)ing Nigerian'' (2019) * ''

On Ajayi Crowther Street ''On Ajayi Crowther Street'' is a 2019 graphic novel by Elnathan John and illustrated by Alaba Onajin. It was published by Cassava Republic Press Cassava Republic Press is a steering African book publishing company established in Nigeria in 2 ...

'' (2019)

References

External links

Elnathan John
official website
Elnathan's Dark Corner
blog
Elnathan John
on Twitter * Gen de Botton
"An Indies Introduce Q&A With Elnathan John"
ABA – American Booksellers Association, 5 July 2016. {{DEFAULTSORT:John, Elnathan 1982 births Living people Ahmadu Bello University alumni Nigerian male novelists Nigerian satirists Nigerian satirical novelists Nigerian columnists Satirical columnists People from Abuja 21st-century Nigerian male writers 21st-century Nigerian novelists