Description
'Mesmerizing storytelling... Under the Udala Trees is breathtaking, rich with history and heart' Tayari Jones One day in 1968, at the height of the Biafran civil war, Ijeoma's father is killed and her world is transformed forever. Separated from her grief-stricken mother, she meets another young lost girl, Amina, and the two become inseparable. Theirs is a relationship that will shake the foundations of Ijeoma's faith, test her resolve and flood her heart. From Ijeoma's childhood in war-torn Biafra and through the perils and pleasures of her blossoming sexuality, Okparanta takes us on a journey through thwarted hopes and wrong turns and into the everyday joys and sorrows of marriage and motherhood. A triumphant love story, Under the Udala Tree is work of extraordinary beauty that will enrich your heart. 'Under the Udala Trees [recalls] the work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in its powerful interweaving of the personal and the political... the dizzying scope of her storytelling keeps you gripped' Financial Times
A triumphant love story that follows the life of one woman from the chaos of Nigeria's 1968 civil war through forbidden first love, loss, marriage and motherhood
About the Author
CHINELO OKPARANTA was born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria and moved with her family to the US at the age of ten. She received her BSc from Pennsylvania State University, her MA from Rutgers University and her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her stories have been featured in the New Yorker and Granta. In 2013 she was shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing. She is a winner of a 2014 Lambda Literary Award, a 2016 Lambda Literary Award, the 2016 Jessie Redmon Fauset Book Award in Fiction, and of a 2014 O. Henry Prize.
Reviews
Under the Udala Trees [recalls] the work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in its powerful interweaving of the personal and the political. Okparanta's simple, direct prose is interspersed with... allegory and folklore and... the dizzying scope of her storytelling keeps you gripped -- Lucy Popescu * Financial Times *
A brave novel seeking to challenge prejudice... Okparanta describes with clarity and seeming simplicity states that are not simple at all -- Aida Edemariam * Guardian *
A harrowing coming-of-age tale that, with elegant prose, captures the conflict of the time while illustrating how it resounds today. Okparanta shines a light on the plight of the gay community in Nigeria, where its condemnation is tragically not consigned to the history books -- Antonia Charlesworth * Big Issue in the North *
A culture of sexual and gender oppression is vividly examined by the Nigerian author who has won the O. Henry Prize and Lambda Award for her short stories. [It] offers a memorable, evocative account of a woman's fight to assert her identity in a country that scorns her -- Sarah Gilmartin * Irish Times *
[A] remarkable and exquisite first novel about wars - both external and internal - endurance, survival, and love. A coming of age story that demands not just to be not just read, but felt, [it] wraps us in the spell of an exceptionally talented writer and storyteller -- Edwidge Danticat, author * Claire of the Sea Light and many others *
Boldly unadorned and utterly heartbreaking - Okparanta dares to tell a story that the world desperately needs to hear. Almost fable-like in its simplicity... Raw, emotionally intelligent and unflinchingly honest... a triumph -- Taiye Selasi, author * Ghana Must Go *
Under the Udala Trees is an evocative, fiercely told story about a woman's life, about family and love, and about becoming who you are meant to be. Okparanta is an incendiary, essential voice -- Justin Torres, author * We the Animals *
Okparanta has firmly placed her name amongst the ranks of some of our most talented and unflinching writers... A stunning book. Unforgettable -- Maaza Mengiste, author * Beneath the Lion's Gaze *
A searing, yet delicately nuanced, story of an age of innocence first shattered by the vulgarity of war and its aftermath, and then by forbidden desire and religious intolerance. Under the Udala Trees is narrated in lyrical and lucid prose, in a wise and compassionate voice. It bowled me over -- Zakes Mda, author * The Heart of Redness *
Under the Udala Trees has all the ingredients of a great novel: set against the backdrop of war, it tells a story of loss, forbidden love, and one woman's fight against tradition on her journey to becoming who she really is. An African bildungsroman, its direct and folkloric prose captures the spirit and mood of its time and place. This is a brave and timely achievement -- Helon Habila, author * Measuring Time *
Okparanta is major new voice not only because of her mesmerizing storytelling, but for her bravery and originality. She is a truth teller and soothsayer... Under the Udala Trees is breathtaking, rich with history and heart -- Tayari Jones, author * Silver Sparrow and others *
Okparanta tells a unique and devastatingly hopeful story about the paradox of love: Even in the midst of war, and in a world dominated by violence and prejudice, still, love transcends -- Mia Couto, author * Sleepwalking Land and others *
Under the Udala Trees is my favorite debut novel of the year - gorgeous, moving, and entirely hopeful. I wept through the final pages of this beautifully written, extremely necessary book -- Jami Attenberg, author * Saint Mazie, The Middlesteins, and others *
A beautiful and tender coming of age story that opens during the Biafran Civil War and sees our heroine through first love, marriage and motherhood as she struggles with the demands of love and faith * Most Exciting Books of February, Stylist *
[Okparanta's] pared-back, plain prose [is] an effective counterpoint to the drama and horror of war -- Lesley McDowell * Sunday Herald *
The characters and the plot are utterly convincing... Okparanta's language choices are also impressive, moving between poetic and prosaic, depending on the requirements of the story... It's almost impossible to believe that Under the Udala Trees is a debut novel. It's beautifully crafted, gripping and heart-breaking with moments of brightness piercing the dark, hostile environment of Christian, patriarchal, heterosexual Nigeria. I'll be astonished if this doesn't make the shortlist of every prize it's eligible for. Chinelo Okparanta is a major new voice in fiction' -- Naomi Frisby * the Writes of Women *
Powerful from page one... Okparanta's writing is perfectly paced and a delicate balance between the poetic and the blunt and sparse. Ijeoma is an exceptional character -- Beth Townsend * Plastic Rosaries *
A beautifully written book with some big themes... Yet it manages to have a unique perspective on [them]... This has high hopes for the Baileys Prize... Very smart, but [it] never loses that emotional core -- Anna James * A Case For Books *
[This] debut novel eloquently advocates resisting the narratives handed down by previous generations, and the unadorned eroticism of Ijeoma's relationships with other women is a rebuke to the doctrine that condemns them as an "abomination". Okparanta takes comfort in the capacity for people to change, but her postscript is poignant: in 2014, Nigeria criminalised the very relationships she portrays -- Lettie Kennedy * Observer *
[The] use of traditional story structure is interwoven with the simple Biblical language... Okparanta's writing is beautiful and moving * Laura Tisdall blog *
Awards
Short-listed for IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 2017 (UK).
Book Information
ISBN 9781847088383
Author Chinelo Okparanta
Format Paperback
Page Count 336
Imprint Granta Books
Publisher Granta Books
Weight(grams) 237g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 20mm
A triumphant love story that follows the life of one woman from the chaos of Nigeria's 1968 civil war through forbidden first love, loss, marriage and motherhood
About the Author
CHINELO OKPARANTA was born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria and moved with her family to the US at the age of ten. She received her BSc from Pennsylvania State University, her MA from Rutgers University and her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her stories have been featured in the New Yorker and Granta. In 2013 she was shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing. She is a winner of a 2014 Lambda Literary Award, a 2016 Lambda Literary Award, the 2016 Jessie Redmon Fauset Book Award in Fiction, and of a 2014 O. Henry Prize.
Reviews
Under the Udala Trees [recalls] the work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in its powerful interweaving of the personal and the political. Okparanta's simple, direct prose is interspersed with... allegory and folklore and... the dizzying scope of her storytelling keeps you gripped -- Lucy Popescu * Financial Times *
A brave novel seeking to challenge prejudice... Okparanta describes with clarity and seeming simplicity states that are not simple at all -- Aida Edemariam * Guardian *
A harrowing coming-of-age tale that, with elegant prose, captures the conflict of the time while illustrating how it resounds today. Okparanta shines a light on the plight of the gay community in Nigeria, where its condemnation is tragically not consigned to the history books -- Antonia Charlesworth * Big Issue in the North *
A culture of sexual and gender oppression is vividly examined by the Nigerian author who has won the O. Henry Prize and Lambda Award for her short stories. [It] offers a memorable, evocative account of a woman's fight to assert her identity in a country that scorns her -- Sarah Gilmartin * Irish Times *
[A] remarkable and exquisite first novel about wars - both external and internal - endurance, survival, and love. A coming of age story that demands not just to be not just read, but felt, [it] wraps us in the spell of an exceptionally talented writer and storyteller -- Edwidge Danticat, author * Claire of the Sea Light and many others *
Boldly unadorned and utterly heartbreaking - Okparanta dares to tell a story that the world desperately needs to hear. Almost fable-like in its simplicity... Raw, emotionally intelligent and unflinchingly honest... a triumph -- Taiye Selasi, author * Ghana Must Go *
Under the Udala Trees is an evocative, fiercely told story about a woman's life, about family and love, and about becoming who you are meant to be. Okparanta is an incendiary, essential voice -- Justin Torres, author * We the Animals *
Okparanta has firmly placed her name amongst the ranks of some of our most talented and unflinching writers... A stunning book. Unforgettable -- Maaza Mengiste, author * Beneath the Lion's Gaze *
A searing, yet delicately nuanced, story of an age of innocence first shattered by the vulgarity of war and its aftermath, and then by forbidden desire and religious intolerance. Under the Udala Trees is narrated in lyrical and lucid prose, in a wise and compassionate voice. It bowled me over -- Zakes Mda, author * The Heart of Redness *
Under the Udala Trees has all the ingredients of a great novel: set against the backdrop of war, it tells a story of loss, forbidden love, and one woman's fight against tradition on her journey to becoming who she really is. An African bildungsroman, its direct and folkloric prose captures the spirit and mood of its time and place. This is a brave and timely achievement -- Helon Habila, author * Measuring Time *
Okparanta is major new voice not only because of her mesmerizing storytelling, but for her bravery and originality. She is a truth teller and soothsayer... Under the Udala Trees is breathtaking, rich with history and heart -- Tayari Jones, author * Silver Sparrow and others *
Okparanta tells a unique and devastatingly hopeful story about the paradox of love: Even in the midst of war, and in a world dominated by violence and prejudice, still, love transcends -- Mia Couto, author * Sleepwalking Land and others *
Under the Udala Trees is my favorite debut novel of the year - gorgeous, moving, and entirely hopeful. I wept through the final pages of this beautifully written, extremely necessary book -- Jami Attenberg, author * Saint Mazie, The Middlesteins, and others *
A beautiful and tender coming of age story that opens during the Biafran Civil War and sees our heroine through first love, marriage and motherhood as she struggles with the demands of love and faith * Most Exciting Books of February, Stylist *
[Okparanta's] pared-back, plain prose [is] an effective counterpoint to the drama and horror of war -- Lesley McDowell * Sunday Herald *
The characters and the plot are utterly convincing... Okparanta's language choices are also impressive, moving between poetic and prosaic, depending on the requirements of the story... It's almost impossible to believe that Under the Udala Trees is a debut novel. It's beautifully crafted, gripping and heart-breaking with moments of brightness piercing the dark, hostile environment of Christian, patriarchal, heterosexual Nigeria. I'll be astonished if this doesn't make the shortlist of every prize it's eligible for. Chinelo Okparanta is a major new voice in fiction' -- Naomi Frisby * the Writes of Women *
Powerful from page one... Okparanta's writing is perfectly paced and a delicate balance between the poetic and the blunt and sparse. Ijeoma is an exceptional character -- Beth Townsend * Plastic Rosaries *
A beautifully written book with some big themes... Yet it manages to have a unique perspective on [them]... This has high hopes for the Baileys Prize... Very smart, but [it] never loses that emotional core -- Anna James * A Case For Books *
[This] debut novel eloquently advocates resisting the narratives handed down by previous generations, and the unadorned eroticism of Ijeoma's relationships with other women is a rebuke to the doctrine that condemns them as an "abomination". Okparanta takes comfort in the capacity for people to change, but her postscript is poignant: in 2014, Nigeria criminalised the very relationships she portrays -- Lettie Kennedy * Observer *
[The] use of traditional story structure is interwoven with the simple Biblical language... Okparanta's writing is beautiful and moving * Laura Tisdall blog *
Awards
Short-listed for IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 2017 (UK).
Book Information
ISBN 9781847088383
Author Chinelo Okparanta
Format Paperback
Page Count 336
Imprint Granta Books
Publisher Granta Books
Weight(grams) 237g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 20mm
