Although Dambudzo Marechera was the first African to claim the Guardian Fiction Prize, the talented Zimbabwean writer is still not one of the continent’s best known literary voices. Nevertheless, since the publication of

in 1978, Marechera and his writings have enjoyed a certain cult status in Zimbabwe. Indeed, to this day an annual “House of Hunger Poetry Slam” is held at the

in Harare every June. What seems to have captured the popular imagination is the novella’s honest account of the struggles of everyday life. As Dzingayi Mutumbuka explains,

gives illuminating insights into the struggle for sanity in a situation full of contradictions, where there was a severe dislocation of moral and social norms which, for the young

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Citation: Chow, Shun Man Emily, Grant Hamilton. "The House of Hunger". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 March 2012 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=28556, accessed 19 April 2024.]

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