Téa
Mutonji
Téa Mutonji was a finalist for the 2019 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize for her debut book of short stories, Shut Up You’re Pretty. She was the inaugural author to be published under Arsenal Pulp Press' VS. Books imprint, a series curated and edited by writer-musician Vivek Shraya featuring work by new and emerging Indigenous or Black writers, or writers of colour. Mutonji was named emerging writer of the year by the Ontario Book Publishers Organization in 2017. Born in Congo-Kinshasa, she lives and writes in Toronto.
Videos
Téa Mutonji on Shut Up You're Pretty
Award History
Jury Citation
"Téa Mutonji’s Shut Up You’re Pretty is a fiercely intelligent collection about the inner lives of young women, examining abortion, family conflict, and the emergence of sexual identity. In writing marked by bursts of intense language, Mutonji takes the reader into her nuanced study of a young Congolese immigrant, always refusing to look away from pain and uncertainty. Driven by its crisp, unsettling dialogue and meticulous psychological detail, this is a compelling work about the fear and yearning of our youth."
— 2019 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize Jury (Dennis Bock, Michael Kaan, and Suzette Mayr)
