Author writes coming of age stories for young readers

There has never been a dearth of literary skill in Zimbabwe, and in 2009, 2010 and 2012 respectively, local writers Ivor Hartmann, Mirirai Moyo and Rutendo Chabikwa all won Golden Baobab Prize for African writers in different categories. Last year judges were determined to find the best writers from the numerous entries, so it was not surprising to find Harare-based Sabina Mutangadura shortlisted for the Early Chapter Books prize for her short story, Seven.

Growing up in a family where creativity and self expression were important, Mutangadura has always had a way with words and a love of literature. Educated at the Dominican Convent in Bulawayo, she then spent an exciting year as a features writer at the Chronicle, before enrolling at Rhodes University for a BA in Journalism and Economics.

Besides the basic skills of shorthand and typing, Mutangadura would become familiar with news reporting, travel and magazine writing, and feel equally at home on radio and TV.  Upon graduating Mutangadura’s career took a different turn and she spent five years in communications and public relations for the corporate world, often involved in the glamorous world of fashion, with trips abroad.

An interest in film, animation and script writing took Sabina to Cape Town, but by 2008 a different type of creativity captured her imagination and she resolved to become a full time writer. Chemusana, her first fiction story, was published in a Weaver Press short story anthology, Women Writing Zimbabwe, in 2008. The story of Chemusana, a young boy whose mother seeks work in the Diaspora, leaving him in the care of his father and a house maid, is familiar to many Zimbabweans. Luckier than many children who end up as boarders with extended families while their parents seek employment outside the country, Chemu still has a father, a gogo, and a place in school.

Even so, he finds it hard to come to terms with the changes in his life when the maid, Estelle, breaks the news to him:  “She’s not coming back to us, Chemu. She’s decided to live and work in the UK.” “But what about me?” the boy wailed.

Mutangadura’s affinity for children and her ability to enter their world is seen again in her latest short story, Seven. Changing school or moving to another town are sometimes more difficult for children than for their parents, and for Simi, the move with her widowed mother from Victoria Falls to an arid mining town is particularly sad because of parting from her best friend, Emma.

Resorting to taking money from her mother’s drawer, Simi decides to make her way back to Victoria Falls, but meets an unpleasant character on the vlei on her way out of town. Help comes from an unexpected source, tragedy is averted and Simi’s new best friend ensures a happy ending to this moving story. Seven is the first in an anthology of related short stories, which Mutangadura will complete by the year’s end. These are coming of age stories, in which her characters search for identity and a sense of belonging. As a mother of two, she will have ready material for many children’s stories to come.

Golden Baobab’s mission is to inspire writers of African children’s literature, providing young readers with the stimulus and excitement of the written word. Prizes are awarded annually, and a citizen of any African country may enter a short story, regardless of race or geographical location.