51ĀŅĀ×

Chigozie Obioma, the author of two shortlisted novels, will visit 51ĀŅĀ× for the 2024 Spring Literary Festival, which takes place on March 20-21. He will lecture at 11a.m. on Thursday March 21 and he will read from his work that evening at 7:30 (both events in Walter Hall Rotunda).

His most recent novel, ā€œAn Orchestra of Minorities,ā€ was published in 2019 by and is described as a ā€œcontemporary twist on Homerā€™s Odysseyā€ which, by combining ā€œIgbo folklore and Greek tragedy in the context of modern Nigeriaā€ creates ā€œa rich, enchanting experience.ā€

Told through the centuries-old voice of a guardian spirit, the prose in ā€œAn Orchestra of Minorities,ā€  is rich and purposeful. Obioma succinctly weaves history and folklore, the real and the magical, together in an emotional epic that explores the depths of the human experience and highlights the intense desire to return home after the cruelty of the world takes you far from it.

This novel has been translated into 20 languages, was a finalist for both the Booker Prize 2019 and the Digital Book World Awards 2019, was a Editorā€™s Choice, and appeared on Best of the Year lists from , , and .

Obiomaā€™s previous novel, ā€œThe Fisherman,ā€ was published in 2015 and was also a finalist for the Booker Prize, making Obioma one of only two writers to have been shortlisted for all their works. His third novel, "The Road to the Country," will be published on June 4, 2024, with Penguin Random House.

More information about Obioma is available .