Marija Jurić, born on March 2, 1873, and died on November 30, 1957, was a Croatian journalist, writer, and advocate for women’s rights. She used the name Zagorka when writing her books and articles. Marija was the first woman to work as a journalist in Croatia.
Véronique Tadjo was born in 1955. She is a writer, poet, novelist, and artist from Côte d’Ivoire. She has lived and worked in many countries in Africa and among people from Africa living in other countries.
Werewere Liking (born in 1950 in Cameroon) is a writer, playwright, and performer who lives and works in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. In 1980, she started the Ki-Yi Mbock theatre troupe, and in 1985, she created the Ki-Yi village to help young people learn about the arts. Her novel Elle sera de jaspe et de corail is a song-novel told through the writings of a character called a misovire, which means “man-hater” from the Greek word miso (“hate”) and the Latin word vir (“man”).
Ahmadou Kourouma was born in 1927 in Boundiali, Côte d’Ivoire. He was the eldest son of a well-known Malinké family. He was raised by his uncle and studied in Bamako, Mali.
Fatou Keïta was born in Soubré, Ivory Coast. She received her primary education in Bordeaux, where her father was studying surgery. Later, she attended high school in Bouaké and earned her baccalaureate in 1974.
Bernard Binlin Dadié was born on January 10, 1916, and passed away on March 9, 2019. He was a writer from Ivory Coast who worked as a novelist, playwright, poet, and government official. From 1957 until his later years, he held many important jobs in the government of Côte d’Ivoire.
Micheline Coulibaly was born in 1950 and passed away on March 19, 2003. She was a writer from Ivory Coast who created short stories and books written for children.
Tanella Suzanne Boni was born in 1954. She is a poet and novelist from Ivory Coast. She is also a professor of philosophy at the University of Abidjan.
Roxana was born in San Jose, Costa Rica. When her father passed away when she was thirteen years old, she moved to Paris to live with her uncle, who was the ambassador of Costa Rica in France. While living in Paris, she read books by authors such as Hugo, Duras, Yourcenar, and Proust, which helped her develop a love for literature.
Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie was born on June 19, 1947. He is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His writing often blends magical realism with stories based on history, focusing on the connections and differences between Eastern and Western cultures, especially those in the Indian subcontinent.