At Helsinki Book Fair 2026, Olatunbosun shares first glimpse of ‘The Letter Grandma Left’
By Editor
AT Helsinki Art Fair 2026 held in Finland from October 22 to 26, Nigerian journalist and writer, Yinka Olatunbosun made a big move with the unveiling of her first collection of short stories titled The Letter Grandma Left and Other Stories. This chapbook is a first-of-its-kind for this writer. Being featured at the fair is indeed an opportunity to project her fictional storytelling to a global audience. A milestone for Olatunbosun’s career in African culture and contemporary arts, the chapbook is her attempt to boost reading cultureat the global level.
The chapbook, edited by Olasunmbo Olajubu, features stories that are set in different cities of the world unleashing love, stigma, mental health and the unspoken emotional resonance of everyday human encounters. Built on strong imagination, the collection contains contemporary stories woven around universal themes.
While reflecting on the journey towards writing this chapbook in a press statement, Olatunbosun describes it as a product of grit and determination.
”The Letter Grandma Left is a collection of fictional stories as well as a quiet commentary on the stigma against children living with autism,” she said. “In truth, I didn’t set out to use the story for advocacy but in the course of developing the story around a hardworking woman with three children, this child’s episode with his grandma in my imagination begged for my creative attention and I purged it out in a short story that can be easily digestible.
“The chapbook itself is my attempt to drive the campaign towards reading a book per day. It is easy to read and with just six stories. I think everyone should be able to complete its reading within a day.”
The chapbook will soon be available on Amazon and print copies would be available in Nigeria and other countries on demand.
Olatunbosun is a senior arts journalist who currently works as Assistant Editor, THISDAY Style. Her creative writing portfolio in short stories includes Dirty Alani (2025), Blood on The Staircase (2026).
The Helsinki Book Fair, one of Finland’s premier cultural events, attracted thousands of publishers, authors, and literature enthusiasts. Attendees at the launch praised the chapbook’s rhythmic depth and vivid narrative voice, with several local distributors expressing keen interest in wider Nordic distribution.
With this international debut, Olatunbosun joins a growing wave of contemporary Nigerian writers capturing global attention and enriching the international literary landscape.
