In 2005 LIP Magazine published Bye-Bye Barbar, Taiye Selasi's essay on Afropolitans (a new generation of Africans), and her story The Sex Lives of African Girls was published in Granta. Ghana Must Go is her debut novel published by Viking and set to be released March 2013.Ghana Must Go is the story of the Sai family. The death of Kwaku Sai brings together the family he abandoned years before. The family gathers in Ghana, at their mother, Fola's new home. The eldest son and his new wife, the twins, and their baby sister all come together for the first time in years, each carrying secrets of their own. What is revealed in their coming together is the story of how they came apart. Ghana Must Go shares the truths hidden, lies told and crimes committed in the name of love. It is at once a portrait of family and an exploration of the importance of where we come from and our obligations to one another. In one sweeping narrative that takes us from West Africa to New England to London, Ghana Must Go teaches that the stories we share with one another can build a new future. Synopsis from Penguin.com.
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A. Igoni Barrett, author of From Caves of Rotten Teeth, new collection of short stories will be released May 2013 in the US and June 2013 in the UK.
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In Love is Power or Something Like That when it comes to love, things are not always what they seem. In contemporary Lagos, a young boy may pose as a woman online, and a maid may be suspected of sleeping with her employer and yet still become a young wife's confidant. Men and women can be objects of fantasy, the subject of beery soliloquies. They can be trophies or status symbols. Or they can be overwhelming in their need.In these wide-ranging stories, A. Igoni Barett roams the streets with people from all stations of life. A man with acute halitosis navigates the chaos of the Lagos bus system. A minor policeman, full of the authority and corruption of his uniform, beats his wife. A family's fortunes fall from love and wealth to infidelity and poverty, as poor choices unfurl over three generations. With humor and tenderness, Barett introduces us to an utterly modern Nigeria, where desire is a means to an end, and love is a power as real as money. Synopsis from Graywolf Press.
