Chris Abani
Encyclopedia
Igbo people
Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
n author. Abani's first novel, Masters of the Board, was about a Neo-Nazi takeover of Nigeria. The book earned one reviewer to praise Abani as "Africa's answer to Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth, CBE is an English author and occasional political commentator. He is best known for thrillers such as The Day of the Jackal, The Odessa File, The Fourth Protocol, The Dogs of War, The Devil's Alternative, The Fist of God, Icon, The Veteran, Avenger, The Afghan and The Cobra.-...
." The Nigerian government, however, believed the book to be a blueprint for an actual coup, and sent the 18-year-old Abani to prison in 1985. After serving six months in jail, he was released, but he went on to perform in a guerilla theatre group. This action led to his arrest and imprisonment at Kiri Kiri, a notorious prison. He was released again, but after writing his play Song of a Broken Flute he was arrested for a third time, sentenced to death, and sent to Prison, where he was jailed with other political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s and inmates on death row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
. His father is Igbo
Igbo people
Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
, while his mother was English born.
He spent some of his prison time in solitary confinement
Solitary confinement
Solitary confinement is a special form of imprisonment in which a prisoner is isolated from any human contact, though often with the exception of members of prison staff. It is sometimes employed as a form of punishment beyond incarceration for a prisoner, and has been cited as an additional...
, but was freed in 1991. He lived in exile in London until a friend was murdered there in 1999; he then fled to the United States.
He is a Professor at the University of California, Riverside
University of California, Riverside
The University of California, Riverside, commonly known as UCR or UC Riverside, is a public research university and one of the ten general campuses of the University of California system. UCR is consistently ranked as one of the most ethnically and economically diverse universities in the United...
and the recipient of the PEN USA Freedom-to-Write Award, the 2001 Prince Claus Awards
Prince Claus Awards
The Prince Claus Fund was inaugurated in 1996, named in honor of Prince Claus of The Netherlands. It receives an annual subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs....
, a Lannan Literary Fellowship, a California Book Award, a Hurston-Wright Legacy Award
Hurston-Wright Legacy Award
The Hurston-Wright Legacy Award is a literary award given by the National Community of Black Writers.The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award is the first national award given to black American writers. The award namesakes are two of the most influential black authors, Zora Neale Hurston and Richard...
and the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award
Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award
The Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award is awarded annually to a novel or book of short stories by an American author who has not previously published a book of fiction. The award is named after Ernest Hemingway and funded by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation, which has been administered by the Hemingway...
. Selections of his poetry appear in the online journal Blackbird.
His most recent book of poetry, Sanctificum (Copper Canyon Press
Copper Canyon Press
Copper Canyon Press is an independent, non-profit small press, specializing in the publication of poetry and located in the picturesque town of Port Townsend, Washington. Since 1972, the Press has published poetry exclusively and has established an international reputation for its commitment to...
, 2010), is a book-length sequence of linked poems, bringing together religious ritual, the Igbo language of his Nigerian homeland, and reggae rhythms in a postracial, liturgical love song.
Published works
Novels- The Virgin of Flames (Penguin, 2007)4
- GraceLandGraceLandGraceLand is a 2004 novel by Chris Abani. It received the 2005 Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award and Hurston-Wright Legacy Award, was the Silver Medalist for the California Book Award, was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and Commonwealth Writers Prize, and was shortlisted for the...
(FSG, 2004/Picador 2005) - Masters of the Board (Delta, 1985)
Novellas
- Becoming Abigail (Akashic BooksAkashic BooksAkashic Books is a Brooklyn-based independent publisher. Akashic Books' collection began with Arthur Nersesian's THE FUCK UP in 1996, and has since expanded to include Dennis Cooper's "Little House on the Bowery" series , Chris Abani's Black Goat poetry series, and the internationally successful...
, 2006) - Song For Night (Akashic BooksAkashic BooksAkashic Books is a Brooklyn-based independent publisher. Akashic Books' collection began with Arthur Nersesian's THE FUCK UP in 1996, and has since expanded to include Dennis Cooper's "Little House on the Bowery" series , Chris Abani's Black Goat poetry series, and the internationally successful...
, 2007)
Poetry
- Sanctificum (Copper Canyon PressCopper Canyon PressCopper Canyon Press is an independent, non-profit small press, specializing in the publication of poetry and located in the picturesque town of Port Townsend, Washington. Since 1972, the Press has published poetry exclusively and has established an international reputation for its commitment to...
, 2010) - Hands Washing Water (Copper Canyon Press, 2006)
- Dog Woman (Red Hen PressRed Hen PressRed Hen Press is an American non-profit press specializing in the publication of literary fiction and poetry located in Pasadena, California. Founded by Kate Gale, the mission of Red Hen Press is to discover, publish, and promote works of literary excellence that have been overlooked by mainstream...
, 2004) - Daphne's Lot (Red Hen Press, 2003)
- Kalakuta Republic (SaqiSaqi BooksSaqi Books is an independent UK publisher co-founded in 1984 by author and feminist Mai Ghoussoub to "print quality academic and general interest books on the Middle East". It now claims to be "the UK's largest publisher of Middle Eastern and Arabic titles"...
, 2001).
Honors and awards
20092008
- Winner, PEN Beyond the Margins Award for Song For Night.
- Nominated for Lamada Award (the Virgin of Flames)
- Recipient, Distinguished Humanist Award (UC, Riverside)
- 2007 Pushcart Nomination for Sanctificum. (poetry)
2007
- New York Times Editor's Choice (Song for Night)
- Finalist, PEN Beyond the Margins Award (Becoming Abigail)
- A Barnes and Noble Discovery Selection (The Virgin of Flames)
- A New York Times Editor's Choice (The Virgin of Flames)
- A New York Libraries Books For Teens Selection (Becoming Abigail)
2006
- A New York Times Editor's Choice (Becoming Abigail)
- A Chicago Reader Critic's Choice (Becoming Abigail)
- A selection of the Essence Magazine Book Club (Becoming Abigail)
- A selection of the Black Expressions Book Club (Becoming Abigail)
- Pushcart Nomination (poetry) (A Way To Turn This To Light)
- Shortlisted for International IMPAC Dublin Literary AwardInternational IMPAC Dublin Literary AwardThe International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award is an international literary award for a work of fiction, jointly sponsored by the city of Dublin, Ireland and the company IMPAC. At €100,000 it is one of the richest literary prizes in the world...
(GraceLand).
2005
- Winner, Hemingway Foundation/PEN AwardHemingway Foundation/PEN AwardThe Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award is awarded annually to a novel or book of short stories by an American author who has not previously published a book of fiction. The award is named after Ernest Hemingway and funded by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation, which has been administered by the Hemingway...
. (GraceLand) - Winner, Hurston-Wright Legacy AwardHurston-Wright Legacy AwardThe Hurston-Wright Legacy Award is a literary award given by the National Community of Black Writers.The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award is the first national award given to black American writers. The award namesakes are two of the most influential black authors, Zora Neale Hurston and Richard...
(GraceLand) - Silver Medal, California Book Award for Fiction (GraceLand)
- Finalist, Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction. (GraceLand)
- Finalist, Commonwealth Writers Prize, Best Books (Africa Region)(GraceLand)
- Pushcart Nomination for Blooding. StoryQuarterly.
2003
- Lannan Foundation Literary Fellowship, USA
- Hellman/Hammet Grant from Human Rights Watch, USA.
2002
- Imbongi Yesizwe Poetry International Award, South Africa.
2001
- PEN USA West Freedom-to-Write Award, USA.
- Prince Claus AwardsPrince Claus AwardsThe Prince Claus Fund was inaugurated in 1996, named in honor of Prince Claus of The Netherlands. It receives an annual subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs....
. - Middleton Fellowship, University of Southern California, USA
External links
- Official Website
- Poems in Blackbird
- Biography from the International Literature Festival Berlin
- TED Talks: Chris Abani on the stories of Africa at TED GlobalTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
in 2007 - TED Talks: Chris Abani muses on humanity at TEDTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
in 2008