5 debut novels to binge-read before year end

As 2019 draws to a close, Bookshelf offers a list of debut novels by Nigerians you need to read. Nigeria’s literary world keeps growing by the day as writers continue to publish works that further enrich it. This year opened with writers releasing debut novels that have kept bookworms busy. Some of them include ‘A […]

As 2019 draws to a close, Bookshelf offers a list of debut novels by Nigerians you need to read.

Nigeria’s literary world keeps growing by the day as writers continue to publish works that further enrich it. This year opened with writers releasing debut novels that have kept bookworms busy. Some of them include ‘A Particular Kind of Black Man’ by Tope Folarin, Jumoke Verissimo’s ‘A Small Silence’, Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia’s ‘The Son of the House’, Nnamdi Ehirim’s ‘Prince of Monkeys’, and Suyi Davies Okungbowa’s ‘David Mogo, Godhunter’.

‘A Particular Kind of Black Man’

Released in August, ‘A Particular Kind of Black Man’ tells the story of Tunde who lives in Utah and struggles to find his place as a black boy in a very white part of the world. Published by Simon and Schuster, the book has been described as a poignant exploration of the meaning of memory, manhood, home, and identity as seen through the eyes of a first-generation Nigerian-American.

Tope Folarin is a Rhodes Scholar and winner of the 2013 Caine Prize for African Writing for his first published short story, ‘Miracle’.

‘A Small Silence’

A poet with two collections to her name, ‘I Am Memory’ (2008) and The Birth of Illusion (2015), Verissimo recently published her first novel ‘A Small Silence’. Described as a “lyrical debut novel” in a Guardian UK review by Irenosen Okojie, and said to “thoughtfully” deal “with mental illness and trauma” on the website of the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

The story is centred on Prof, an activist and retired academic, released from prison who resolves to live a life of solitude until he meets Desire, an orphan and final year student who idolises him.

Verissimo currently lives in Canada, where she is studying towards a PhD in English and Film Studies at the University of Alberta.

‘The Son of the House’

Kidnapped in Nigeria, this novel focuses on two women who relate the stories of the different lives they lived. Nwabulu was sent off to become a housemaid, and Julie who is privileged, educated, and adored by her parents.

Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia is a lawyer and academic who has done much advocacy work on issues such as violence against women and girls, and health. She holds a doctorate in law from Dalhousie University in Canada and often advises international organisations. ‘The Son of the House’ was recently awarded Best International Fiction Book award at the 2019 Sharjah International Book Fair.

‘Prince of Monkeys’

Set in Lagos during the 1980s and early 1990s, this book tackles politics, power, class and spirituality. Its central character, Ihechi, and a group of close friends discover Lagos together as teenagers and engaging in discussions and life typical of teenagers when tragedy strikes during an anti-government riot.

Nnamdi Ehirim is based in Lagos and Madrid. His writing has appeared in Afreada, Brittle Paper, Catapult, The Kalahari Review, and The Republic. He cofounded a clean-energy start-up in Nigeria and is currently pursuing an MBA focused on entrepreneurship in the renewable energy sector.

‘David Mogo, Godhunter’

Published on July 9, ‘David Mogo, Godhunter’ is an urban fantasy set in Lagos. It brings to life a Lagos where thousands of deities are rained down, and a demigod offers service as a freelance Godhunter. But everything changes when he takes more than he can chew on this mission.

Suyi Davies Okungbowa is an MFA candidate in Creative Writing at the University of Arizona, where he teaches writing, and has worked in editorial at Podcastle and Sonora Review.