Nthengwe’s second book wins global award

Ndiilokelwa Nthengwe, a prominent activist and local author, recently received the 29th Annual Communicator Global Award for Best Book Cover Design for her second book, titled ‘You Fucked with the Wrong Generation!: An Ode to Modern-Day Activism in Namibia’.

The Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts has officially announced the recipients of the 29th Annual Communicator Awards early this month.

The communicator awards honour creative achievement in marketing and communications. This edition received almost 3 000 entries from the United States and other countries.

Virgil Mwatotele illustrated Nthengwe’s book cover, Fiona Nandago handled the layout, and Merja Iileka oversaw the book’s editing.

The book makes a passing allusion to Namibia’s colonial and apartheid-era political past to argue for generational overlaps and distinctions.

Winning the prize, in Nthengwe’s opinion, means that the recipient is adding to the value chain of authors and creative entrepreneurs who would not otherwise have access to these changes.

Winning means increasing the visibility of the team that collaborated on the project. Therefore, Mwatotele and Nandago might now be credibly recognised for their designs.

The fact that a well-known Namibian author is receiving this kind of award for the first time, according to Nthengwe, lays the groundwork for other historic events.

“Being an author entails viewing and observing things objectively so that, when you start writing, you can digest your experiences more clearly. It also entails having the fortitude to deal with all of those events in a truthful and honourable manner. Until you reach a point where you have motivated more people, like yourself, in your diversity, to become writers, authors, and industry change-makers, it means raising and creating an industry, one book and one award at a time,” she said.

The book was released in September last year.

The activism scene in Namibia served as the setting for the book’s inspiration. It was written for all of us who required a secure base from which to communicate our activity across various platforms and media.