Adamu Usman Garko

Adamu Usman Garko (born 2002) is a Nigerian teenage poet, essayist and short story writer. He is the author of a poetry collection titled ‘When Day Breaks’. The book was recognized by DailyTrust Newspaper among the '15 Best Books of 2018'.
== Early Life==
Adamu Usman Garko, born in 2002 to the family Mr. & Mrs. of Usman Garko, in Pantami, Gombe Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria. Adamu Usman Garko received his primary education at Gombe High School. He is currently a Grade 12 student of Gombe High School, Gombe Local Government Area, Gombe State, Nigeria.
== Literary Career==
Adamu Usman Garko started writing as early 2015 while in JSS3 (Junior Secondary School). He derives inspiration from the literary works of writers such as Umar Sidi (poetry) and Abubakar Adam Ibrahim (prose). Others include: Sada Malumfashi; Hadiza Isma El-Rufa’i; Richard Inya; Ibrahim Solo; Muhammed Nurain; Shakespeare, Chimamanda Adichie. Garko’s literary works has been published by both print and electronic media.
In a 2018 anthology work ‘84 Delicious Bottles Wine’ edited by Odega Shawa and Onyeka Nwelue published to celebrate the 84th birthday of Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, was Garko’s poem ‘Date’ published along with other poems in the anthology.
He was invited by the Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka to his (Soyinka’s) hometown in Ogun State, where he had a face-to-face encounter with Nigeria’s only Nobel Laureate. After serving as a judge in the Northeast Zonal Competition for Decipher Solutions Spelling Bee Competition for secondary school students. Subsequently, he was invited by Decipher Solutions to attend the grand finale and spoke to the participants on the pursuit of education, in Abuja.
Garko was the Artist of the Month for the Yesmin El-Rufa’I Foundation September last year, where he was invited by the foundation to grace the Kaduna Book and Arts Festival, and within Gombe, he has been invited to speak at different Gombe State chapter of Sustainable Development Goals; to commemorate the International Peace Day where he was a guest speaker on climate change and many other occasions.
=== Poems===
* Poet’s Mother 
* Homeless
* Date
* Remembrance
* A Kind of Dying 
=== Essays & Stories===
* Through The Sun’s Eye 
* Moonchild 
* New Falling at Dawn
* Death at The Door
* Farewell
* My Journey into Kongi Forest 
== Honors and Awards==
* Winner Nigeria Prize for Teen Authors, Hilltop Creative Art Foundation (2020)
* Certificate of Recognition,The Royal Commonwealth Society UK (2019)
* Finalist Wole Soyinka International Cultural Exchange (2018)
* Best Winner in Prose, Creative Club Gombe State University
* ArtistoftheMonth,Yesmin EL-Rufa’I Foundation (September, 2018)
* YoungNigeria’sWriters,in contribution to 2018 Chinua Achebe Anthology
* Certificate of Recognition for Insightful Composition, Goi Peace Foundation (2019)
* Runner-upHalima Factor Initiative Gombe Day of Literature (2017)
* Certificate of Excellence for promoting literacy and creativity, Decipher Solutions
== References ==
== External Links ==
*Adamu Usman Garko on Facebook
*Adamu Usman Garko on Twitter
*Adamu Usman Garko on Instagram
Category:Nigerian literary awards
Category:Nigerian literature
Category:Nigerian poets
Category:Nigerian short story writers
Category:Nigerian male short story writers
Category:Nigerian essayists