Harare Review of Books

To our judges, Sista Zai Zanda and Tinashe Tafirenyika: Thank you soooo much for making yourselves—your time and expertise—available, and for sponsoring the prizes! Very grateful.

To everyone who entered: Congratulations and thank you for submitting to #HRBZimSpecPo, and for your courage in putting your work out there! The judges were impressed with the standard of entries.

And now…. Our judges have considered, collaborated and confabbed, and these are our winners!

1. Alternative Transport x Chioniso Tsikisayi—who wins USD100, a signed copy of The Process of Poetry edited by Roseanna McGlone, and Soon Come by Kuba Shand Baptiste.
2. Zvapera Mumunyu x Hebe R. Manyepxa—who wins $60 and a signed copy of The Process of Poetry edited by Roseanna McGlone.
3. Nyika Reloaded x Tapiwa Constance—who wins $40 and a copy of Die With Me by Hope Masike.

Congratulations to our winners! 🎉👏🏾👏🏾

Now, here are our judges’ thoughts on the entries—whether they conformed to the theme, on the winners they chose, the speculative poetry genre in general, and the Zim poetry scene.

#HRBZimSpecPo: Meet our wonderful judges

Tinashe Tafirenyika
Most of the entries understood the theme. Nyami Nyami and Mbuya Nehanda were very popular and I suppose they are key characters in Zimbabwean mythology. A couple of poems were really good but unfortunately missed the theme completely, which was heartbreaking because we had to set them aside. The standard of writing was generally good, although there were a few where the spirit of the poem was beautiful but a bit more technical skill would have elevated the piece.

“Alternative Transport” is one of the best poems I’ve ever read. It captured the essence of Zimbabwe in a way that someone who has never walked these streets or a tourist could never even dream. I saw myself in all these places as I read it, truly transported. The technical skill was astounding. Making words bend to one’s will like that! The grammar, the punctuation, the choice of verse form, all of it was beautiful and a pleasure to read. The poem felt like a song and every read had fun little Easter eggs in it, new discoveries each time.

“Zvapera Mumunyu” is a beautiful piece. Truly chilling, but bursting with hope and the promise of a new dawn at the end so it presented a good balance of emotions and was a journey. Rain is sacred to our spirituality as Africans, regardless of your specific religion, and in reading this poem I could feel it wash over me as it did over the protagonist in the poem. The verse form served the poem, and the use of language was quite masterful.

“Nyika Reloaded” was probably my favourite piece! I’m a poetry slam girlie myself and I could see this on stage in the Book Cafe 10 years ago at The House of Hunger poetry slam! It really took me back and was such a fun read. I’d love to hear it on stage someday. I enjoyed that the poem was uplifting to young people, connecting new with old.

“The Infinite Homes Of Little Green Man” was such a pleasurable read. So was “I Wish To See You,” very creative and true to the theme. I quite enjoyed “Mother, Daughter”; the refrain is still in my mind. We had a difficult time narrowing things down because so many poems were excellent.

On the speculative poetry genre: I am a total nerd so I really enjoy speculative poetry. Yes to SciFi and local legends and mythologies. We have a lot of those themes in short stories and books so it’s always a treat when they appear in poetry, even though it’s harder to capture a whole universe in a few verses of rhyme. After this competition, I hope more poets tap into it and we get to enjoy more delicious poetry about aliens and spirits.

On the Zim poetry scene: I haven’t been as active in the Zim poetry scene I was a few years ago so take my comments with a pinch of salt. I really enjoy the younger poets that are coming up, they are so fearless and talented. When I started, (performance) poetry was very male-dominated so it fills me with joy that so many women and girls are comfortable enough to finally be part of the scene. Zimbabwean poetry is some of the best in the world and I am happy to know that this will continue for generations to come because the new poets are just as good, if not better, than those before them.

Sista Zai Zanda
I thoroughly enjoyed reading #HRBZimSpecPo. The majority of poems were of a good standard in the sense that they were not tellingly AI-generated. That is, our 2025 entrants demonstrated a nuanced and deep appreciation of our Zimbabwean cultures.

Sadly, we seemed to have attracted too few entries from outside the Harare/Shona language space. For a country with sixteen official languages, this means there is still so much room for our poets to tap into their blood lineages, learn stories from our elders, become more curious about their home towns and villages and express and platform the fullness and depth of our rich cultural and linguistic diversity.

I am well pleased with the treatment of the theme. There were many entrants who went beyond the clichéd representation of Zimbabwean mythologies. I would have enjoyed reading more urban legends that take us deeper into the “born location” myths. I’m thinking here of the wonderful example of Hope Masike’s collection of modern Zimbabwean horror poems, “Die With Me”.

What I will add by way of more detailed feedback is that some of the poets might find it useful to really sit with Ngano etc with the intention to develop a more nuanced comprehension of these folktales. Be curious about the core principles and values these stories serve to impart and then how to project those ancient values into a futuristic story. I recommend analysing the Ngano and children’s storytelling work of Dr Ignatius Mabasa in this regard.

Congratulations to our three winners. You gave us a pleasantly difficult job. Each of you brought something unique to the table and demonstrated your strength as a writer or orator.

“Alternative Transport” by Tsikisayi Zvapera took first prize for several reasons. They are clearly a seasoned writer, dexterous in their use of metaphor, simile and imagery. Their storytelling is compelling, drawing together the sacred and the everyday in a relatable narrative. I particularly enjoyed a poem that took us on a journey across the broad expanse of Zimbabwe and across borders. Their compression of time into an intertwining of past, present and future registers an appreciation of Zim Spec Poetry as a genre rooted in Bantu philosophies of being.

Coming in close at second place is “Zvapera MuMunyu” by Hebe R Manyepxa. Again, another stellar writer. I loved the structure of the poem. The poet took great pains with editing so that the story really shone. The first line was absolutely captivating. The poet built in suspense from the outset, hooked the reader’s attention and skilfully carried the reader all the way to the end. I was not sure how the narrative would fall – as utopia or dystopia; but there was a magnificent and very refreshing blend of both. I really want to see this poem adapted as a movie! Great work. 

And last but not least, “Nyika Reloaded” by Tapiwa Constance. While not (yet) as strong a writer (many of us need editors who can sharpen our technique), this entry was heavy on slam poetry energy. I am here for that! I would have loved to have received this entry as a video or audio submission. The humour, the seamless blending of references to big tech and the rising ama2K were a great interpretation of theme. This poem sits comfortably within the Zim spoken word tradition, setting a bold new direction for that scene in terms of Speculative Fiction themes and content.

On the speculative poetry genre: Listen! This genre gives me life. This is the substance of my creative writing PhD. Check out NAMA award winning text, “Weeping Tomato” by Samantha Rumbidzai Vazhure for fun and innovative ways to reimagine ourselves and incorporate poetry and prose in futuristic texts.

On the Zim poetry scene: Yoh! It’s dynamic and brilliant. Every single time I return and spend some time on home soil (sadly not as frequently as I’d love), I seek out our poets and poetry events. A special shout out to Harare Open Mic. Of course, Zim Dancehall (a source of inspiration for UK based Zim publisher and NAMA award winning writer Samantha Vazhure) is its own genre of poetry; and we need to take it seriously as a contemporary literary form. The reference to Winky D in “Nyika Reloaded” insinuates as much.

Well, there you have it. Again, thank you to everyone who entered, and well done!