Joseph Ndwaniye (born 1962 Murambi) is a Rwandan nurse and writer.[1] He garnered widespread attention with the publication of his first novel, La promesse faite à ma soeur, which won multiple awards.
Medical career
editNdwaniye worked in several hospitals in Rwanda as a medical assistant before moving to Belgium over 30 years ago where he qualified as a specialist cancer nurse, trained in laboratory technologies and completed a Masters in Hospital Management. Since 2001, he has worked at the Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc in Brussels in a unit for child and adult patients receiving bone marrow transplants and hematopoietic stem cell treatment.[2]
Literary works
editHis first novel, La promesse faite à ma soeur, published in 2007 by Impressions Nouvelles,[3] was a finalist in the Prix des Cinq Continents de la Francophonie[4] and the prix du Marais and the Prix Jean Bernard.[5] This novel is the fruit of the author's own return to Rwanda several years after the genocide. La promesse faite à ma soeur tells the story of Jean who returns to Rwanda to find his family, visit his twin brother in prison and look for answers to a multitude of questions.[6] The story's protagonist was noted as having a past similar to Ndwaniye, with the text being described as "autofictional" and "implicitly autobiographical". Ndwaniye denies that the book is an autobiography, but does state that it features autobiographical elements, adding "I don't know any novelist who doesn't write about himself".[7]
In 2012, his second novel, Le muzungu mangeur d'hommes, was published by Aden.[8] In this novel, a young, idealistic Dutch couple moves to Rwanda. The young woman takes over as Chief Medical Officer in a regional hospital, whilst her husband spends his time exploring the region, learning kinyarwandan and discovering the local customs and culture. They face the realities of the country around them and each discover happiness in their own way.[9]
Plus fort que la hyène, published by La Cheminante, is his first young adult novel. It is the result of his desire to create a link between his career as a nurse and his passion for literature, which, along with music, offers hope in the most difficult medical and personal contexts.[10]
He contributed a short story to Nouvelles de Rwanda (2019) published by Magellan & Cie Editions.[11]
He is currently finishing his next novel which is set in Bolivia.[12]
References
edit- ^ Administrator. "Ndwaniye Joseph". www.ecrivainsbelges.be.
- ^ "Joseph Ndwaniye". 23 May 2016.
- ^ "Joseph Ndwaniye - Les Impressions Nouvelles". lesimpressionsnouvelles.com.
- ^ "Prix des cinq continents de la Francophonie : les dix romans finalistes de (...) - Organisation internationale de la Francophonie". www.francophonie.org. Archived from the original on 2018-08-21. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
- ^ Hron, Conducted and Translated by Madelai (2009). "A Journal of Social Justice - Interview with Writer Joseph Ndwaniye". Peace Review. 21 (3) (Volume 21, 2009 - Issue 3 ed.): 347–353. doi:10.1080/10402650903099419. S2CID 144530711.
- ^ "Entretien avec Joseph Ndwaniye · Karoo". 1 June 2013.
- ^ Nicki, Hitchcott (2015). Rwanda genocide stories : fiction after 1994. Liverpool. pp. 88–90. ISBN 9781781381946. OCLC 930797676.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ "Aden Editions +++ Le muzungu mangeur d'hommes". www.aden.be.
- ^ "Les derniers pour la route du 10 décembre". 30 November 2012. Archived from the original on 21 August 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ "Joseph NDAWNIYE | Foire du livre // 22 - 25 FEVRIER 2018". Archived from the original on 2018-02-22. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
- ^ "Nouvelles du Rwanda". www.editions-magellan.com. Retrieved 2020-01-15.
- ^ "En busca de raíces africanas - La Razón". www.la-razon.com.