When Amos Tutuola's first novel The Palm-Wine Drinkard appeared in 1952 it aroused exceptional worldwide interest. Drawing on the West African (Nigeria) Yoruba oral folktale tradition Tutuola described the odyssey of a devoted palm-wine drinker through a nightmare of fantastic adventure. Since then The Palm-Wine Drinkard has been translated into more than 15 languages and has come to be regarded as a masterwork of one of Africa's most influential writers.