The Jhalak Prize
We're thrilled to partner with the Jhalak Prize and the Jhalak Children's & YA Prize – which celebrate books by writers of colour – to help them increase awareness of the prize titles amongst booksellers, who have always been the best champions of books in their local communities.
Other ways we support reading
The Jhalak Prize and the Jhalak Children's & YA Prize
The two winners of the 2024 Jhalak Prizes were announced on Thursday 30 May 2024, at a ceremony at the British Library. Each winner was awarded £1,000 and received a specially created work of art as part of the ongoing Jhalak Art Residency.
Yepoka Yeebo won the Jhalak Prize for her astounding non-fiction debut, Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled the World (Bloomsbury), praised by the judges as a ‘A story like no other… which vividly illuminates Ghana’s complex history’.
Hiba Noor Khan won the Jhalak Children’s and Young Adult Prize for her poignant historical novel, Safiyyah’s War (Andersen Press), which the judges described as ‘an exquisitely written, hopeful, and necessary book for these impossibly difficult times.’
You can read all about the winning books below, and explore this year's shortlists and longlists. Want to hear more? Don't forget to follow #JhalakPrize24 and @jhalakprize on social media for updates.
"Both urgent and timeless, these are books for the world we live in, and the one we must imagine, and build for the future. These are books to read now, pass on to the future, and treasure forever."
Sunny Singh, Prize Director
The Jhalak Prize winner 2024
Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled The World
by Yepoka Yeebo (Bloomsbury)
Yepoka Yeebo won the Jhalak Prize 2024 for her astounding non-fiction debut. In Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled the World, Yeebo chases the wild trail of John Ackha Blay-Miezah, unfolding a riveting account of Cold War entanglements and African dreams, revealing the untold true story of a grifter who beat the West at its own thieving game.
As well as a prize of £1,000, Yeebo was presented with a specially created work of art by Samer Abdelnour as part of the ongoing Jhalak Art Residency. Of this artwork, Refaat's Angel, the artist says:
“For this piece I wanted to honour Refaat Alareer and his legacy. He and I had been communicating in the weeks before his assassination, and it only felt right to dedicate this piece to him. Like millions of people the world over, I am deeply moved by his poem, 'If I must die', and at some point, I realized that I might be working towards materialising a character from it. The process involved experimenting with different clay models, and then focusing on shape, level of abstraction and the emotions they might convey. In past works, I formed shapes to my hands and this piece has some of this approach. The final clay model was cast in bronze, and the patina chosen to highlight the pain and horror of this genocide with hope and love Refaat gave to his students, his work and to us all.”
“Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled the World by Yepoka Yeebo is an intriguing, compelling, ambitious and well-researched book. It gives insight into worlds that most of us do not usually encounter and I was completely drawn in. Yeebo is an exciting new voice and I look forward with eager anticipation to her future works.”
Anni Domingo, judge, Jhalak Prize
“A story like no other. Yepoka’s groundbreaking work vividly illuminates Ghana's complex history through a compelling, charismatic, and fraudulent character, setting a new genre standard with meticulous research, nuanced analysis, and evocative storytelling.”
Stella Oni, judge, Jhalak Prize
“This is a worthy winner. Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled the World is a complex masterpiece, capturing personal, universal, and political narratives. “
Denise Saul, judge, Jhalak Prize
The Jhalak Children's & Young Adult Prize winner 2024
Safiyyah’s War
by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
Hiba Noor Khan won the Jhalak Children’s and Young Adult Prize 2024 for her poignant historical novel. Safiyyah’s War is set during the Second World War on the streets of Paris. When Safiyyah’s father is arrested by the Nazis for his work with the Resistance, it falls to Safiyyah to leave the mosque where she lives, enter the treacherous catacombs under Paris, and lead their Jewish neighbours to safety.
As well as a prize of £1,000, Khan was presented with a specially created work of art by Yousef Saif as part of the ongoing Jhalak Art Residency. Of this artwork, The Eye of Time and The Buraq, the artist says:
"This piece is inspired by the ongoing act of remembering as Palestinians or our history as well as the beauty of the Arabic language. 'Filas?in', 'Palestine' in Arabic, ends with the word 'tin' which means 'earth'. In Arabic every linguistic nuance has weight. The Winged Horse is ‘Buraq’; Volcano is ‘Burqaan’; Blessing is ‘Baraqa’; Lighting is ‘Baurq’. The Dove, ' Hamam' in Arabic, is also a timeless symbol in Middle Eastern traditions and its wings exactly echo that of the 'Buraq', guiding the way. In this way one word evokes many and as native speakers we understand the myths of our shared history as beyond the literal. In the piece the movement of a family, including the newest generation, is held within a circle, representative of the sacred geometries present in Arabic cultures. They are rising out of the rubble, even as they are unshakeably rooted in the land, as if to say ‘we will only rise’. This piece was first painted in gouache before a digital freehand paint-over. The process was then split by instant printing on canvas, before a further final painting was done quite substantially in gouache on top. Aesthetically for ageing to occur naturally I did not place any glass over this piece."
“Safiyyah's War is an exquisitely told story of courage and resilience, heart wrenching and inspiring, with such relevance to the world around us.”
J.P. Rose, judge, Jhalak Children's & YA Prize
“Safiyyah's War is an exquisitely written, hopeful, and necessary book for these impossibly difficult times. Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, this true story shines a light on the kindness and courage of the Grand Paris Mosque community who provided shelter and a safe escape route for their Jewish neighbours. In a world that sometimes seeks to divide us, this book reminds us how deeply connected we are. And when we feel small and helpless, it reminds us how powerful empathy, unity and resistance can be.”
Rashmi Sirdeshpande, judge, Jhalak Children's & YA Prize
“Safiyyah’s War is an astonishing tale of bravery, hope and humanity, that brims with empathy and courage on every page. Urgent, vital and beautifully written, this is undoubtedly a modern classic that is both timely and timeless. A story for the world we’re living in, that should be read by every child and stocked in every school library. Hiba Noor Khan will break your heart then slowly piece it back together again, but you’ll never be the same after meeting Safiyyah and the other characters in this book. I can’t wait to see what Hiba Noor Khan does next.”
Danielle Jawando, judge, Jhalak Children's & YA Prize
"Every year, Jhalak Prize shortlists exemplify literary excellence in contemporary Britain and mark them as future classics. I am in awe of the courage required to tackle difficult themes and ideas coupled with the command of the chosen genre and form demonstrated by our shortlistees. These are books about belonging and its price, about confronting injustice with hope, and about the audacity of trying even in face of impossible odds. Most of all, these are books about moral courage, which makes the books on our 2024 shortlists necessary, urgent and timeless."
Sunny Singh, Prize Director
The Jhalak Prize shortlist 2024
A Flat Place
by Noreen Masud (Penguin)
Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled The World
by Yepoka Yeebo (Bloomsbury)
Boundary Road
by Ami Rao (Everything With Words)
Fire Rush
by Jacqueline Crooks (Vintage)
Self-Portrait as Othello
by Jason Allen-Paisant (Carcanet)
Twelve Words for Moss
by Elizabeth-Jane Burnett (Penguin)
“These six are books that have made me laugh, cry, hold my breath at some beautiful image, thought, or turn of phrase. These authors have enriched my life as they took me on a journey into their various worlds and I thank them.”
Anni Domingo, judge, Jhalak Prize
“These authors took me through laughter, heartbreak and joy to places strange and delightful, beyond my imagination. With each page, I whispered, 'Thank you for inviting me in.'”
Stella Oni, judge, Jhalak Prize
“Curating this strong shortlist with fellow judges has been a rewarding experience. Each book is a page-turner.”
Denise Saul, judge, Jhalak Prize
Jhalak Children's & YA Prize shortlist 2024
Geoffrey Gets the Jitters
by Nadia Shireen (Puffin)
How to Die Famous
by Benjamin Dean (Simon & Schuster)
Safiyyah’s War
by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
Steady for This
by Nathanael Lessore (Hot Key Books)
To the Other Side
by Erika Meza (Hodder Children's Books)
Wild Song
by Candy Gourlay (David Fickling Books)
“There truly is something for every reader here and every single book is a wonder. With stars like these, the future is bright for our industry.”
Rashmi Sirdeshpande, judge, Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize
“I felt incredibly lifted to know these joyous and thought-provoking books will be seen and read by children up and down the country, who may not have been introduced to these incredible stories had it not been for the Jhalak Prize.”
J.P. Rose, judge, Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize
“[This shortlist] proves that time and time again, we have some of the finest writers for children and young adults coming out of the U.K.”
Danielle Jawando, judge, Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize
The Jhalak Prize longlist 2024
A Flat Place
by Noreen Masud (Penguin)
A Pebble in The Throat
by Aasmah Mir (Headline)
Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Swindled The World
by Yepoka Yeebo (Bloomsbury)
Azucar
by Nii Ayikwei Parkes (Peepal Tree Press)
Boundary Road
by Ami Rao (Everything with Words)
Bright Fear
by Mary Jean Chan (Faber & Faber)
Elsewhere
by Yan Ge (Faber & Faber)
Fire Rush
by Jacqueline Crooks (Vintage)
River Spirit
by Leila Aboulela (Saqi Books)
Self-Portrait As Othello
by Jason Allen-Paisant (Carcanet)
Small Worlds
by Caleb Azumah Nelson (Penguin)
Twelve Words for Moss
by Elizabeth-Jane Burnett (Penguin)
Jhalak Children's & YA Prize longlist 2024
Friendship Never Ends
by Alexandra Sheppard (Knights Of)
Geoffrey Gets the Jitters
by Nadia Shireen (Puffin)
How to Die Famous
by Benjamin Dean (Simon and Schuster)
Koku Akanbi and the Heart of Midnight
by Maria Montunrayo Adebisi, ill. Simone Douglas (Orion Children’s Books)
My Life as a Chameleon
by Diana Anyakwo (Little Brown)
Part of a Story that Started Before Me
Chosen by George the Poet (Penguin)
Poetry Prompts
by Joseph Coelho, ill. Georgie Brikette, Grasya Oliyko, Amanda Quartey & Viola Wang (Quarto Kids)
Safiyyah’s War
by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
Steady for This
by Nathanael Lessore (Hot Key Books)
Story of Now
by Shelina Janmohamed, ill. Laura Greenan (Welbeck Children’s Books)
To The Other Side
by Erika Meza (Hodder Children’s Books)
Wild Song
by Candy Gourlay (David Fickling Books)
Anni Domingo, Stella Oni and Denise Saul
Anni Domingo
Anni works regularly as a Theatre Director. She currently lectures on Drama and directs at several Drama Colleges. Anni won a place at Hedgebrook Writers in Residence Programme in Seattle and the National Writing Centre’s Escalator programme in Norwich. Her debut novel, Breaking the Maafa Chain, was published in September 2021, by Jacaranda Books, UK and by Pegasus Books, USA in 2022. The novel was short-listed for the Lucy Cavendish First novel Competition and longlisted for Mslexia novel competition 2019. An extract from her novel Breaking the Maafa Chain also won the Myriad Editions First Novel competition in 2018 and is featured in the New Daughters of Africa (2019) anthology edited by Margaret Busby. Her poems and short stories are published in various anthologies including Wild Imperfections, published by Penguin in November 2021. Her first screenplay, Blessed Assurance has just been filmed and will be out later this year. Anni is now working on her second novel Ominira as part of her PhD.
Stella Oni
Stella Oni's debut police procedural, Deadly Sacrifice, featuring detective Toks Ade, the first black female police detective in UK fiction, was shortlisted for the SI Leeds Literary Prize in 2016 and published by Jacaranda in 2020. The gripping novel was an Audible Crime and Thriller pick. She has contributed to various anthologies, including Midnight Hour, published by Crooked Lane. She won the International Thriller Writers (ITW) scholarship in 2021 and was a runner-up for the inaugural CrimeFest bursary for writers of colour in 2022. Stella is an ITW judge and was an adjudicator for the Scottish Association of Writers Crime Fiction Pitlochry Prize 2023. She is a popular speaker and also delivers crime fiction workshops. She is writing book two of the Toks Ade Mystery series and the first of her contemporary crime cosy, The London House Mystery series. Stella also creates content in Food and Technology, loves reading and reviewing books on her blog.
Denise Saul
Denise Saul’s debut collection The Room Between Us (Pavilion / Liverpool University Press, 2022) was shortlisted for the TS Eliot poetry prize 2022, was a Poetry Book Society Summer Recommendation 2022 and was longlisted for the Jhalak Prize 2023. Her poem ‘Golden Grove’ was highly commended in the Forward Prize 2022. She is the author of two pamphlets: White Narcissi (flipped eye, 2007), a Poetry Book Society Pamphlet Choice; and House of Blue (Rack Press, 2012), a PBS Pamphlet Recommendation. A recent guest editor for The Poetry Review, Denise is a past winner of The Poetry Society’s Geoffrey Dearmer Prize and a Fellow of The Complete Works. She received an ACE Grant for the Arts Award for her video poem collaborative project, Silent Room: A Journey of Language. Denise lives in Surrey.
J. P. Rose, Rashmi Sirdeshpande and Danielle Jawando
J. P. Rose
J. P. Rose was born in Manchester, adopted early and grew up in the Yorkshire countryside where racial tolerance ‘wasn’t even a concept’. Feeling isolated, but always a daydreamer, it was animals and writing stories which kept her company. She trained as an actress but frustrated at not only the lack of diversity but the stereotyping of roles she was auditioning for, J. P. eventually decided to focus on her love of the written word, as well as leading writing workshops in prisons before eventually starting to write novels. As a Black author with dual heritage, J. P. is passionate that children’s books are inclusive and diverse, a celebration of self, which help to connect, empower and affirm. J.P.’s teen psychological horror book, The Haunting Of Tyrese Walker, which looks at grief, has been short and longlisted for several awards, including the Jhalak Prize 2023. J.P. is not only a children’s author but also is the bestselling author of over 16 gritty crime novels, writing under the name of Jacqui Rose, selling almost a million copies across all formats. Writing for adults, she has just collaborated with Martina Cole on Martina’s latest novel, and writing for children, J.P. has lots of exciting projects coming out, including a historical middle grade novel. J. P. lives in the countryside with her family surrounded by her beloved horses and other animals.
Rashmi Sirdeshpande
Rashmi Sirdeshpande is an award-winning children's author who writes a mix of fiction and non-fiction. Her picture book with Ruchi Mhasane, Dadaji's Paintbrush, was shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize in 2023. She was an official World Book Day author for 2022 and her books have been published around the world and reviewed in a number of newspapers from The Guardian to The Wall Street Journal. Her first picture book, Never Show a T-Rex a Book, illustrated by Diane Ewen, won the 2021 Society of Authors Queen's Knickers Award and the Anna Dewdney Award in the USA and was shortlisted for the Lollies 2022. Her non-fiction book, Good News: Why the World is Not as Bad As You Think, illustrated by Adam Hayes, was shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Awards.
Danielle Jawando
Danielle Jawando is an author and screenwriter. Her debut YA novel, And the Stars Were Burning Brightly, won best senior novel in the Great Reads Award, and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, the YA Book Prize, the Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize, the Branford Boase Award and was long-listed for the CILIP Carnegie Medal. Her previous publications include the non-fiction children’s book Maya Angelou (Little Guides to Great Lives), the short stories Paradise 703 (long-listed for the Finishing Line Press Award) and The Deerstalker (selected as one of six finalists for the We Need Diverse Books short story competition), as well as several short plays performed in Manchester and London. Danielle has also worked on Coronation Street as a storyline writer. Her second novel, When Our Worlds Collided, won the 2023 Jhalak Children’s and YA Prize and the 2023 YA Book Prize. Her third novel, If My Words Had Wings, will be published in May 2024.
The two Jhalak Prize awards celebrate writing by British/British resident BAME writers and annually award £1,000 to two winners. 2024 sees the ongoing expansion of the annual Jhalak Art Residency. An artist of colour is commissioned to create a unique work of art that serves as the trophy for the winner of the Jhalak Prize and the Children’s & YA Prize. This year’s artists are Samer Abdelnour for the Jhalak Prize and Yousef Saif for the Children’s and YA Prize. Find out more about the Jhalak Art Residency and the 2024 artists.
In Spring 2024, The Jhalak Foundation and the Royal Literary Fund’s WritersMosaic launch The Review, an editorially independent, 16-page biannual insert in The Bookseller magazine.
At National Book Tokens, we're thrilled to be partnering with the Jhalak Prize for the fourth year in a row to help them increase awareness of the prize titles amongst booksellers, who have always been the best champions of books in their local communities. By distributing point of sale kits to more than 150 bookshops, and social media assets to many hundreds more, and by amplifying their activities through tailored PR support, we help them to create instore displays and shout about the longlists, shortlists and winners from their online channels and in local press.
"Championing the Jhalak Prize has always been so important for us. It has been an honour to have sponsored two winners, one being a Newham author. Such an important prize."
- Vivian Archer, Newham Bookshop
Previous winners of the Jhalak Prize are Travis Alabanza for None of the Above (2023), Sabba Khan for The Roles We Play (2022), Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi for The First Woman (Oneworld) in 2021, Johny Pitts for Afropean: Notes from Black Europe (Penguin) in 2020, Guy Gunaratne for In Our Mad and Furious City (Tinder Press) in 2019, Reni Eddo-Lodge for Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race (Bloomsbury Circus) in 2018 and Jacob Ross for The Bone Readers (Little, Brown) in 2017. Previous winners of the Jhalak Children's & Young Adult Prize are Daniella Jawando for When Our Worlds Collided (2023), Maisie Chan Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths (2022) and Patrice Lawrence for Eight Pieces of Silva (2021).
Visit www.jhalakprize.com to learn more.
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