“There is only one home to the life of a river-mussel; there is only one home to the life of a tortoise; there is only one shell to the soul of man: there is only one world to the spirit of our race. If that world leaves its course and smashes on boulders of the great void, whose world will give us shelter?”

Nigerian writer, playwright, and poet

Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian writer, playwright, and poet. He is known for a body of work that spans fiction, drama, poetry, memoir, and journalism, and for receiving the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature. His writing includes three novels, ten collections of short stories, seven poetry collections, twenty-five plays, and five memoirs, along with two translated works and many articles and short stories for newspapers and periodicals. The Nobel Prize recognized his wide cultural perspective and the poetic qualities he brings to the drama of existence.