The month of March has been generally known as Women’s History Month, an annual declared month that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. In this year celebration, Pierced Rock Press revisited the life of an extraordinary African woman whose contribution to African literature in English language is inestimable.
Flora Nwapa
Florence Nwanzuruahu Nkiru Nwapa (13 January 1931-16 October 1993) mostly known under her pen name Flora Nwapa was a Nigerian writer, publisher and government official.
‘ Efuru’ her first novel and international acclaimed book was published in the United Kingdom in 1966 by Heinemann Educational Books, making Flora Nwapa the first African woman to publish a novel in English language and she became later known as the mother of African literature.
To encourage more women’s writing and the discussion of women’s issues in the society, Flora set up Tana Press in 1974. It became the first print press founded and run by a woman with a primary focus on women’s writing.
She set up the Flora Nwapa Company in 1977 to publish her works of fiction and other writers, both male and female then becoming the first African woman to run a publishing house.
Throughout her career, Flora Nwapa published close to 10 books.