On April 7th, 2026, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, one of the largest public universities in the US, hosted an event celebrating African literature. Over 750 high school students from across the state of Wisconsin gathered for the annual Great World Texts student conference, this year centered on Nnedi Okorafor’s Death of the Author, a genre-bending, structurally daring novel about a disabled Nigerian American writer whose personal crisis sparks an extraordinary act of creative reinvention.

The Great World Texts program, run by UW–Madison’s Center for the Humanities, selects one book each year for high school teachers statewide to teach, equipping classrooms with texts, curriculum guides, and the chance to bring students to Madison for a full-day conference. This year, that meant thousands of young readers in the state spending an academic year studying a novel rooted in Igbo cosmology, Nigerian American identity, and the complicated promises of technology — and then making artistic work in response to it. The two student poster sessions featured hundreds of artworks that included board games, short films, sculptures, wax print textiles, food-inspired projects, poetry, paintings, make-up art, and even AI-generated animations — all inspired by one book!

The event was the result of a year of preparation. Brittle Paper’s Editor, Prof. Ainehi Edoro, helped select Death of the Author and served as faculty advisor for the 2026 GWT, collaborating with the Center for the Humanities team throughout the year. English graduate student Theophilus Okunlola wrote a teaching guide to provide educators with context and classroom approaches. Meanwhile, Africana and Francophone librarian Kimberly Rooney curated a research resource website as well as an exhibition in the lobby of Memorial Library, the university’s main library, featuring textiles, books, and materials exploring the Africanfuturist world of Okorafor’s work. All of that groundwork converged on the success of the April 7th event.

Okorafor was present at all the events. In the morning, she was in conversation with Danielle Weindling, Assistant Director of the Humanities Center, and had a lot to share with the students about life as a writer, the complexities of diaspora experiences, as well as a cautionary statement on AI and creativity. She stopped by the poster hall and explored some of the students’ work, taking photos and was asked by quite a few students to sign their artwork. The day closed with a packed event at the Madison’s Central Public Library that drew close to 200 attendees. The photos below try to capture some of what that day felt like.

All Photos via svheartphotography

Shots from the Great World Texts Student Conference

       

Shots from the exhibition

       

Moments from the Book Talk