Non-fiction — If a girl spends the night in a mortar, she will wake up as a boy, a Rwandan saying goes. It inspires many a little girl in Rwanda to sacrifice a night’s rest to try if it works. Femke van Zeijl portrays African women, quashing the myth that they are mere victims.

Roman — More than a decade Femke van Zeijl traveled through Africa as a journalist. One story she had not been able to write: about relationships between African men and Western women. This theme she covers in her first novel.

Non-fiction — Thatch huts on the savanna and animal wildlife often dominate the western image of Africa. The reality is different: the African continent is urbanising at great speed. Journalist Femke van Zeijl focuses on the subject of city life, the new African reality.