Chigozie Obioma

Chigozie Obioma is the author of The Fishermen, which was a finalist for the 2015 Man Booker prize, and a winner of four other awards, including an NAACP Image award and the FT/Oppenheimer prize for fiction. The novel, which has been translated in 26 languages, is also being adapted into a stage play. Obioma’s essays have been published in The Guardian, The New York Times, and Foreign Policy, who named him one of their 100 Influential People of 2015. Obioma is a professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and in Nigeria where he runs various projects.

Website: chigozieobioma.com
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Obioma’s novel is electrifying, a meticulously crafted character drama told with emotional intensity. His invention, combining Igbo folklore and Greek tragedy in the context of modern Nigeria, makes for a rich, enchanting experience.” — Publishers Weekly

FESTIVAL BOOK

An Orchestra of Minorities

Spanning continents, traversing the earth and cosmic spaces, and told by a narrator who has lived for hundreds of years, An Orchestra of Minorities is a contemporary twist of Homer’s The Odyssey. Written in the mythic style of the Igbo literary tradition, it has been longlisted for the 2019 Booker Prize. Chinonso, a young Nigerian poultry farmer, sees a woman attempting to jump to her death from a highway bridge. Horrified by her recklessness, Chinonso joins her on the roadside and hurls two of his most prized chickens into the water below to demonstrate the severity of the fall. The woman, Ndali, is moved by his sacrifice. Bonded by this strange night, they fall in love. But Ndali is from a wealthy family, and when her family officially objects to the union, Chinonso sells most of his possessions to attend a small college in Cyprus. Once in Cyprus, he discovers that all is not what it seems. Chigozie Obioma has woven a heart-wrenching epic about destiny and determination.

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Profile

“’Why Jay?’: Chigozie Obioma on the haunting death that inspired his novel” — The Guardian

Interviews

“Fate’s Brutality: The Millions Interviews Chigozie Obioma” — themillions.com

Reviews

“An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma review – a stunning leap forwards” — The Guardian
“An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma review – a stunning leap forwards” — TEXT
“Chigozie Obioma’s Homerian Epic” — The Atlantic
“‘On a Spiritual Level, We Are All Minorities.’ Chigozie Obioma on Fate and His New Epic” — Time

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