Bøker av Chigozie Obioma

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2015 MAN BOOKER PRIZEIn this dazzling debut novel, four young brothers in a small Nigerian town encounter a madman, whose prophecy of violence threatens the core of their familyTold from the point of view of nine-year-old Benjamin, the youngest of four brothers, The Fishermen is the Cain and Abel-esque story of an unforgettable childhood in 1990s Nigeria. When their father has to travel to a distant city for work, the brothers take advantage of his extended absence to skip school and go fishing. At the forbidden nearby river they encounter a madman, who predicts that one of the brothers will kill another. What happens next is an almost mythic event whose impact - both tragic and redemptive - will transcend the lives and imaginations of both its characters and its readers. Chigozie Obioma emerges as one of the best new voices of modern African literature, echoing its older generation's masterful storytelling with a contemporary fearlessness and purpose.'Obioma's beautiful, quasi-biblical allegory-like debut... is set to be one of the novels of the year' Eileen Battersby, Irish Times'A startling debut... auspicious... leaps off the pages' Mariella Frostrup, Open Book'A striking, controlled and masterfully taut debut... The tale has a timeless quality that renders it almost allegorical and it is the more powerful for it' FT'It's like being in a Zola or Theodore Dreiser novel... The Fishermen is an elegy to lost promise... and yet it remains hopeful about the redemptive possibilities of a new generation' Guardian'Awesome in the true sense of the word... a truly magnificent debut' Eleanor Catton, author of The Luminaries'Suffused with an air of legend and the supernatural... The Fishermen establishes Obioma as a writer to be taken seriously... ingenious, subtle, ambitious and intriguing' TLS'Terrific' Irish Examiner'Full of deceptive simplicity, lyrical language and playful Igbo mythology and humour... an impressive and beautifully imagined work' Economist'A novel with an intimate canvas but also an undercurrent of something larger, more primal' We Love This Book'A debut that is packed with power and tragedy' Shortlist'Chigozie Obioma truly is the heir to Chinua Achebe' The New York Times'Mr Obioma's long-limbed and elegant writing is shot through with strikingly elevated phrasings... its lessons may be slippery, but its power is unmistakable' Wall Street Journal'The most frustrating thing about The Fishermen is that the author has no other books for the reader to devour once the final page is reached' Chicago Tribune'Searing, incandescent' Harvard Crimson'Succeeds as a convincing modern narrative and as a majestic reimagining of timeless folklore' Publisher's Weekly, Starred review'A powerful, haunting tale of grief, healing, and sibling loyalty' Kirkus'Darkly mythic... a kind of African Cormac McCarthy' USA Today'[A] confident debut novel... frank and lyrical' New Yorker

THE TWICE BOOKER-SHORTLISTED AUTHOR'Obioma is truly the heir to Chinua Achebe' New York Times'Incredibly moving and hopeful' Nadifa Mohamed'Remarkable' Alice Walker 'A major voice' Salman Rushdie'A wondrous novel' Nana Kwame Adjei-BrenyahAt first the vision is grainy but slowly it clears, and there appears the figure of a man.When a country is plunged into civil war, two brothers on either side of it are divided. They will try to find their way back to each other. Kunle's search for his sibling Tunde becomes a journey of atonement which sees him conscripted into the army to fight a war he hardly understands. Once there, he will forge friendships to last a lifetime, and he will meet a woman who will change his world forever. But will he find his brother?The story of a young man seeking redemption in a nation on fire, Chigozie Obioma's novel is an odyssey of brotherhood, love and unimaginable courage set during the Biafran War. Intertwining myth and realism into a thrilling, inspired and emotionally powerful novel, The Road to the Country is a masterpiece.***MORE PRAISE FOR THE ROAD TO THE COUNTRY AND CHIGOZIE OBIOMA***'Chigozie Obioma brings the Biafran War to life in a visceral yet mystical way. Loss, pain and grief are etched onto a canvas that seems timeless and endless. I grieve for those lost in that doomed declaration of independence but celebrate those, such as Chigozie, who carry their torches' Nadifa Mohamed'This powerfully evocative and intimate book is unarguably Obioma's finest. Through subtle, piercing, and gripping language, he renders those seemingly simple but unforgettable moments when our lives intertwine with history, anchoring you to the pages until the end. The Road to the Country will remind you that our existence is the histories of past, present, and the future-and the importance of understanding that. This is among the best books I've read in a while and is certainly destined to be a classic' Ishmael Beah'A spectacular blend of realism and mysticism, The Road to the Country is Chigozie Obioma at his finest. He is a novelist in a league of his own' Imbolo Mbue'A remarkable talent' Independent'Chigozie Obioma is a gifted and original storyteller' Jennifer Clement'Few contemporary novels achieve the seductive panache of Obioma's heightened language' Guardian'One of the most exciting voices of modern African literature' Financial Times'A truly gifted writer, Obioma has proven yet again that he's a literary treasure' Nicole Dennis-Benn

Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2019, a heart-wrenching epic about the tension between fate and free will.

'Obioma is truly the heir to Chinua Achebe' New York Times'Remarkable' Alice Walker 'A major new African writer' Salman RushdieAt first the vision is grainy¿like something seen through wet glass. But slowly it clears, and there appears the figure of a man.When Kunle¿s younger brother disappears as his country explodes in civil war, Kunle must set out on an impossible rescue mission. Set in Nigeria in the late 1960s, The Road to the Country is the epic story of a shy, bookish student haunted by long-held guilt and shame who must go to war to free himself. Kunle¿s search for his brother becomes a journey of atonement that will see Kunle conscripted into the breakaway Biafran army and forced to fight a war he hardly understands, all while navigating the prophecies of a local Seer, he who marks Kunle as an Abami Eda¿one who will die and return to life.The story of a young man seeking redemption in a country on fire, Chigozie Obiomäs novel is an odyssey of brotherhood, love, and unimaginable courage set during one of the most devastating conflicts in the history of Africa. Intertwining myth and realism into a thrilling, inspired, and emotionally powerful novel, The Road to the Country is Chigozie Obiomäs masterpiece.

På den nigerianske landsbygda oppdager den unge hønsebonden Chinonso en dag en kvinne som prøver å kaste seg utfor en bro. Den forskrekkede mannen hiver to av sine fineste fugler ned i elven for å vise jenta hvor farlig et fall kan være. Det blir innledningen til et kjærlighetsforhold mellom Chinonso og Ndali. Men Ndali sliter med å se for seg en fremtid omgitt av høns, og hennes velstående familie motsetter seg forholdet fordi Chinonso mangler utdannelse. Den avvisningen inspirerer ham til å selge alt han eier for å dra fra Nigeria til en annen del av verden og lære - bare for å oppleve at han blir lurt, og at drømmen om en fremtid sammen med Ndali blir stadig mer uoppnåelig.Et kor av minoriteter er fortalt av Chinonsos chi. Det er i igbo-kulturen en voktende ånd som har levd å hundrevis av år. Romanens sammenveving av nigerianske igbo-tradisjoner og elementer av gresk drama, gjør at den kan leses som en moderne variant av Homers Odysseen. En hjerteskjærende beretning om skjebne - og om viljen til å utfordre skjebne.

En sensasjonell debut og en nydelig afrikansk roman om oppvekst, overtro og de ubønnhørlige konsekvensene av brutt tillit og forspilte muligheter. Nigeria i 1990-årene. Fire brødre i den lille byen Akure benytter farens fravær til å dra på fisketur i en elv som de har fått streng beskjed om å holde seg unna. På vei hjem med fangsten støter de en dag på Abulu, en galning som er beryktet for sine spådomskunster. De terger ham på gutters vis, like vågale som de er skremte, men han kommer mot dem som en gammeltestamentlig profet og forkynner at den eldste, Ikenna, vil bli drept av en av sine brødre, en fisker. Denne spådommen skal forfølge guttene og gradvis tære på de skjøre familiebåndene. Moren blir innlagt på sykehus, og faren - familieoverhodet som har båret på ambisiøse drømmer om at guttene skulle bli leger, advokater, ingeniører og flyvere - bryter sammen i erkjennelse av at han ikke kan beskytte dem. Og hvis den gale spåmannen har rett, hvilken av brødrene vil da bli Ikennas morder? Det hjelper lite at de til stadighet forsikrer ham: «Ingen av oss vil drepe deg - vi er ikke engang ordentlige fiskere.» Den forbudte elven ble nominert til Booker-prisen i fjor og har vunnet flere internasjonale priser. Boken er utgitt eller under utgivelse på 24 språk.

Four brothers from a quiet middle-class family in Nigeria take advantage of their father's extended absence to skip school and go fishing at a forbidden river. There they encounter a vision-seeing madman whose prophecy of violence will follow the boys through their lives.

Chigozie Obioma's powerful allegory of brotherhood, vengeance and fate in a new adaptation by Fringe First-winning playwright Gbolahan Obisesan. In a small Nigerian town, Ben and Obembe, along with their two older brothers, slip away to fish at a forbidden river. One day the prophecy of a madman changes the course of their lives forever.