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" Nigeria Jones is an unwavering proclamation of Black girlhood that stretches far beyond surface ideas of strength, tenacity, and survival. This is a story that plunges head first into the nuances of a teenage girl''s personhood, while contemplating what it means to be seen as a small part of a whole. Ibi Zoboi offers a bold meditation on what it means to question your place in, while being critical of, a community that has always been your home. Here, she asks: what does a Black girl do with her guilt and her grief in the midst of all her power?" -- Candice Iloh, author of National Book Award finalist Every Body Looking "To read Nigeria Jones is to have the honor of being invited to one of the most unapologetically Black, womanist, and liberating worlds ever penned. Ibi Zoboi has masterfully woven together a story that explores the dynamism of marginalized people who have often been erased from American literary canon. Through Nigeria and other deeply compelling characters, Ibi has written a love letter to any and everyone who has yearned to feel seen, fought for survival, and been driven by the hope of freedom. If there is a list of essential books for young people, Nigeria Jones MUST be on it." -- Frederick Joseph, New York Times Bestselling Author "Nigeria Jones is a passionate, powerful, and fearless novel about grief and discovering one''s own true identity. A brilliant coming-of-age declaration." -- Malinda Lo, National Book Award-winning author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club
About the author
Ibi Zoboi is the New York Times bestselling author of American Street, a National Book Award finalist; Nigeria Jones, a Coretta Scott King Award winner; Pride; My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich; Okoye to the People: A Black Panther Novel for Marvel; and the Walter Award and LA Times Book Prize–winning Punching the Air, cowritten with Exonerated Five member Yusef Salaam. She is also a two-time Coretta Scott King Honor Award winner for her picture book The People Remember and her middle grade biography of Octavia Butler, Star Child. She is the editor of the anthology Black Enough. Born in Haiti and raised in New York City, she now lives in New Jersey with her family. You can find her online at ibizoboi.net.