Jumoke Verissimo


Jumoke Verissimo is a Nigerian poet and writer. Her first book, I Am Memory, has won some literary awards in Nigeria. Some of her poems are in translation in Italian, Norwegian, French, Japanese, Chinese, and Macedonian.

Life

Jumoke was born in Lagos. She has a master's degree in African studies from the University of Ibadan and a bachelor's degree in English literature from the Lagos State University. She has worked as an editor, sub-editor, copywriter and a freelance journalist for major newspapers such as Guardian and NEXT. Jumoke currently lives in Canada with her daughter, where she is studying for a PhD.

Writing

The People's Daily describes her collection as "a bold stance of pain and other emotions, filtering through the pores of gross indifference and achieving a communal cry of retrospective protest." The Punch also describes her as, "one of those who will change the face of literature in Nigeria", after her first book, which was well-received across the country. Her works have appeared in Migrations, Wole Soyinka ed., Voldposten 2010, Livre d'or de Struga and many other prints and online magazines. Some of her poems are in translation in Italian, Norwegian, French, Japanese, Chinese, and Macedonian.

Awards and nominations