Chibundu Onuzo Explained

Chibundu Onuzo
Honorific Suffix:FRSL
Birth Name:Imachibundu Oluwadara Onuzo
Birth Place:Lagos, Nigeria
Notable Works:

    Imachibundu Oluwadara Onuzo (born 1991) is a Nigerian novelist. Her first novel, The Spider King's Daughter, won a Betty Trask Award,[1] was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize[2] and the Commonwealth Book Prize,[3] and was longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize[4] and the Etisalat Prize for Literature.[5]

    Biography

    Chibundu Onuzo was born in 1991 in Nigeria, the youngest of four children of parents who are doctors, and grew up in Lagos.[6] [7] She moved to England when she was 14 to study at an all-girls' school in Winchester, Hampshire, for her GCSEs,[8] and at the age of 17 began writing her first novel, which was signed two years later by Faber and Faber and was published when she was 21.[9] [10] She was the youngest female writer ever taken on by the publisher.[11] Reviewing her second book, Welcome to Lagos (2016), Helon Habila wrote in The Guardian: "Onuzo's portrayal of human character is often too optimistic, her view of politics and society too charitable; but her ability to bring her characters to life, including the city of Lagos, perhaps the best-painted character of all, is impressive."[12]

    Onuzo received a first-class bachelor's degree in history from King's College London (2012),[13] [5] and went on to earn a master's degree in public policy from University College London. She studied for a PhD at King's College London, researching the West African Students' Union.[14] [15]

    She has written for outlets including The Guardian[16] and NPR,[17] and contributed the short story "Sunita" to the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby.[18]

    Onuzo's third novel Sankofa was published in the UK by Virago in June 2021,[19] and was reviewed by The Guardian as "[a]n accomplished novel that explores difference and belonging with a cool intensity".[20] Brittle Paper described it as "a love story, a political history, and a father-daughter drama".[21] Sankofa was published by Catapult in the US and by Narrative Landscape in Nigeria.[22] [23]

    Bibliography

    Awards and recognition

    The Spider King's Daughter won a Betty Trask Award (2013),[24] and in 2012 was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize[25] and the Commonwealth Book Prize.[26] In addition the novel was longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize[27] and for the Etisalat Prize for Literature in 2013.[28]

    In April 2014 Onuzo was selected for the Hay Festival's Africa39 list of 39 Sub-Saharan African writers aged under 40 with potential and talent to define future trends in African literature.[29]

    In June 2018 Onuzo was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in its "40 Under 40" initiative.[30]

    At the 2020 American Black Film Festival, the HBO Short Film Competition was won by Dọlápọ̀ Is Fine, for which Onuzo co-wrote the screenplay and which was based on her short story "Sunita".[31] [32] The film, which was directed by Joan Iyiola, has also been longlisted for the Bafta British short film award.[33]

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Event: Chibundu Onuzo's 1991 (13 September). Words. Africa in. 2019-07-10. en. 2020-05-29.
    2. Web site: Dylan Thomas Prize: 'Thunderingly good' shortlist revealed. WalesOnline. 2012-10-18. walesonline. 2020-05-29.
    3. Web site: Focus: The splendour of female narratives. 2016-08-27. The Sun Nigeria. en-US. 2020-05-29.
    4. Web site: DON'T DULL!! If You've Not Read Books From These Amazing Nigerian Writers, Then You're Dulling Yourself. 2019-03-31. Daily Advent Nigeria. en-US. 2020-05-29.
    5. Web site: Barbara Kasumu . Author Chibundu Onuzo: 'Don't let anyone tell you that you're too young to contribute' . . 12 June 2013 . 8 March 2017.
    6. Web site: Chibundu Onuzo | Authors | Faber & Faber . Faber.co.uk . 8 March 2017.
    7. Web site: Chibundu Onuzo: The Spider King's Daughter . Ucl.ac.uk . 30 October 2012 . 8 March 2017 . 12 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170312035342/http://www.ucl.ac.uk/political-science/spp-news/301012/ . dead .
    8. Chibundu Onuzo, "When I Was Fourteen", Bella Naija, 17 October 2016.
    9. Chibundu Onuzo, "Young, Gifted and Valid", Huff Post UK, 1 May 2015.
    10. https://www.edbookfest.co.uk/writers/chibundu-onuzo "Chibundu Onuzo"
    11. Emma Greensmith, "Books: The Spider King's Daughter", Varsity, 24 February 2012.
    12. News: Helon. Habila. Welcome to Lagos by Chibundu Onuzo review – high hopes, big city. The Guardian. 18 January 2017.
    13. Web site: Chibundu Onuzo on The Spider King's Daughter - King's Alumni Community . Alumni.kcl.ac.uk . 13 November 2013 . 8 March 2017.
    14. News: . Chibundu Onuzo: 'I love Lagos, but it is not a place you can romanticise' . The Guardian . 1 January 2017 . 8 March 2017.
    15. Web site: Chibundo Onuzo. Georgina Capel Associates Ltd. 1 December 2022.
    16. https://www.theguardian.com/profile/chibundu-onuzo Chibundo Onuzo
    17. Web site: My brother made it in Lagos — and taught me lessons about my life in London. Chibundu. Onuzo. NPR. 13 August 2022. 1 December 2022.
    18. Web site: 'New Daughters of Africa' by Margaret Busby – A review. John . Stevenson. Black History 365. 8 November 2019.
    19. Book: Sankofa. 3 December 2020 . Virago Books. 9780349013121 . 23 August 2021.
    20. News: Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo review – a journey into heritage. Michael. Donkor. Michael Donkor. The Guardian. 19 June 2021.
    21. Web site: An Intimate Story of Love and Decolonization: Review of Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo. Ainehi. Edoro. Ainehi Edoro. Brittle Paper. 22 November 2021. 1 December 2022.
    22. Web site: Virago gets third novel from award-winner Onuzo The Bookseller. Mark Chandler. 13 July 2020 . 2021-03-02. www.thebookseller.com.
    23. Web site: 2020-07-27. Get all the Scoop on Chibundu Onuzo's Highly Anticipated Third Novel. Angeline Peterson. 2021-03-02. Brittle Paper. en-US.
    24. http://www.societyofauthors.org/Prizes/Fiction/Betty-Trask/Past-winners "Previous winners of the Betty Trask Prize and Awards"
    25. Katie Allen, "Dylan Thomas Prize shortlist announced", The Bookseller, 19 October 2012.
    26. Web site: Ainehi . Edoro. Ainehi Edoro. Meet The African Writers In The Running For The Commonwealth Book Prize. Brittle Paper. 6 May 2013.
    27. http://www.foyles.co.uk/Public/Biblio/Detail.aspx?newsId=2837 "Desmond Elliott Prize longlist announced"
    28. http://bookslive.co.za/blog/2013/12/23/the-inaugural-etisalat-prize-for-literature-longlist/ "The Inaugural Etisalat Prize for Literature Longslist"
    29. News: Margaret . Busby. Africa39: how we chose the writers for Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014. The Guardian. 10 April 2014.
    30. Web site: Royal Society of Literature admits 40 new fellows to address historical biases. Flood. Alison. 2018-06-28. The Guardian. en. 2018-07-03.
    31. Amanda N'Duka, "American Black Film Festival Unveils ABFF Award Winners For Virtual Edition", Deadline, August 31, 2020.
    32. WarnerMedia Entertainment, "The Evolution of Self-Acceptance as a Black Woman", Medium, August 19, 2020.
    33. Web site: 2021-02-04. BAFTA Long List Released. 2021-03-02. Awardsdaily - The Oscars, the Films and everything in between.. en-US.

    This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Chibundu Onuzo".

    Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.