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A REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK · A BBC 2 BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK · SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION FUTURES PRIZE · AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
Anna is at a stage of her life when she's beginning to wonder who she really is. She has separated from her husband, her daughter is all grown up, and her mother - the only parent who raised her - is dead.
Searching through her mother's belongings, she finds clues about the West African father she never knew. Through reading his student diary, chronicling his involvement in radical politics in 1970s London, she discovers that he eventually became the president (some would say the dictator) of a small nation in West Africa - and he is still alive. She decides to track him down and so begins a funny, painful, fascinating journey, and an exploration of race, identity and what we pass on to our children.
Praise for SANKOFA:
'A captivating story about a mixed-race British woman who goes in search of the West African father she never knew' REESE WITHERSPOON
'I loved venturing from London to the fictional African nation of Bamana in Sankofa, a novel I found hard to put down' DAILY MAIL
'A real pleasure, it's funny, thought-provoking and holds a light up to everything from cultural differences to colonialism' STYLIST
'I LOVED Sankofa SO MUCH' MARIAN KEYES
'Slick pacing and unpredictable developments keep the reader alert right up to the novel's exhilarating ending' GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE DAY
'Onuzo's sneakily breezy, highly entertaining novel leaves the reader rethinking familiar narratives of colonisation, inheritance and liberation' NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
'A really great book, very poignant' SARA COX
About the author
Chibundu Onuzo was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Her life so far spans two military dictatorships, one internet revolution, two boarding schools, five grandmothers and a first book deal signed at nineteen. Chibundu's first novel,
The Spider King's Daughter, was published by Faber in 2012 and was the winner of a Betty Trask Award, shorted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Commonwealth Book Prize and longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and Etisalat Literature Prize. Her second novel,
Welcome to Lagos, was published by Faber in 2017 and shortlisted for the RSL Encore Award. In 2018 Chibundu was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, as part of its "40 Under 40" initiative. She contributes regularly to the
Guardian, has done a talk for Tedx and her autobiographical show
1991, featuring narrative, music, song and dance, premiered in a sell-out show at Southbank Centre's London Literature Festival in 2018. Find her on Twitter and Instagram @chibunduonuzo.
Summary
A funny, gripping and surprising story of a mixed-race British woman who goes in search of the African father she never knew, by award-winning author Chibundu Onuzo.
Foreword
A funny, gripping and surprising story of a mixed-race British woman who goes in search of the African father she never knew, by award-winning author Chibundu Onuzo.
Additional text
Uniquely layered and lovingly written
Report
Utterly compelling ... A disarmingly moving, surprisingly hilarious and fascinating journey Stylist
