[1] For many years Ávila Laurel was one of the best known authors from Equatorial Guinea who opted not to live in exile.

He has been a constant thorn in the side of his country's long-standing dictatorial government, engaging in protest and political activism.

His first novel to be published in English, By Night the Mountain Burns (And Other Stories, 2014), was shortlisted for the 2015 Independent Foreign Fiction Prize, and is based on his time growing up on Annobón.

Ávila Laurel made headlines in 2011 by embarking on an anti-government hunger strike, and now lives in exile in Barcelona.

He is the author of more than a dozen books, including novels, plays, poetry, essays, and film scripts, and has several unpublished manuscripts, some of them forthcoming.