I know I may be slightly ahead of myself here ,but I think this young lady is absolutely amazing and genuinely talented.

I'm currently on Half of A Yellow Sun, her second novel & I think she's on the right path .

Please lets share thoughts on the novel and this amazing lady,

Her personal website:
http://www.l3.ulg.ac.be/adichie/

The novel:
http://www.halfofayellowsun.com/

Awards don't matter. What matters is whether people are reading her books. Awards are just to promote the industry.

Not necessarily,awards go beyond economic gains,  It ore or less makes a political statement.

How many Nobel laureate a country produces may be a reflection(to some degree) of the state of the category in question within the recepient's own country.

Outside the Nobel award  whats your opinion on this charming lady & her second novel please?

I'd like critical views too o !

I've only read a short story she wrote, and it was splendid.

Poster,
You need to read more of Nigerian writers.

Please, read Festus Iyayi, Isidore Okpewo and Ben Okri.

God bless you.

Orikinla:

Poster,
You need to read more of Nigerian writers.

Please, read Festus Iyayi, Isidore Okpewo and Ben Okri.

God bless you.

Ben Okri sucks. I lov the guy for being a Nigerian, but his books are dense, unapproachable tomes to the extent of being obtuse.

As for Half of a Yellow Sun. . .

Okri's Famished Road is incredible. His latest, 'Starbook' is crap, however. So is his entire body of work, excluding that Booker prize-winner.

Festus Iyayi's most popular work, 'Violence' is second rate at best.

Isidore Okpewho was masterful but boring in The Victims, and 'The Last Duty' is marred by mediocre characterization.

Chimamanda remains the best among all these people you mentioned, IMHO. That is, when we take out the heavyweights Wole Soyinka and Achebe. Chris Abani is phenomenal, but his works have a strong noir-ish slant and our local critics here in Nigeria are finding it hard to relate to his shit. I would tip him ahead of Chimamanda in a race for the Nobel anyday. He's deeper. Helen Oyeyemi is also good.

Loved Isidore Okpewho's novel, "The Victims". The novel showcases the pitfalls of polygamy and the author really potrayed the characterizations/weaknesses of the characters in the show. Really liked it. I havent read Festus Iyayi, but I am curious, was he the guy who was fired from Uniben by Alele Williams?

In response to Doyin and Ziddy, I will not say a word.


Lest you forget, Adichie even failed to win the Caine Prize.
Her biggest prize, the Orange Broadband is for women only.

Her last novel did not even make it to the Booker Prize.

In the inner circles, the much younger Helen Oyeyemi is rated higher than Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie.

Adichie is like Achebe while Oyeyemi is like Soyinka and as Soyinka won the Nobel Prize, Oyeyemi will win it before Adichie.

Oyeyemi has written more works than Adichie.

Like Achebe, Adichie is getting over excited over the success of two of her novels.

Oyeyemi is very humble and doing what she knows best without playing to the gallery of the literary pundits in New York and London.

The hundred thousands of pounds given to Helen Oyeyemi in advance for her debut novel "Icarus Girl" has never been given to any other Nigerian writer.

The Nigerian writers you know are only the English prize winners?

Have you read Obi Nwakama, Adesokan, Olu Oguibe, and others?

The most qualified Nigerian writer for the Nobel Prize in Literature is Ben Okri.
But Pa Chinua Achebe is trying to appeal to win a consolatory nomination to get it.

Adichie has only published two novels and you are talking of the Nobel Prize?

You think the Nobel Prize is Grammy Award?  

Read more Nigerian writers.

The best Nigerian writer as at present is Okinba Launko, the author of "Pirates" published in The Guardian of Nigeria.
He is the humble literary genius, Professor Femi Osofisan, whose pen name Okinba Launko is more popular outide literary walls like my pen name Orikinla Osinachi.

@Orikinla
Nice one,it won't be bad if they both(Ngozi & Helen) get to win the Nobel anyway, I was essentially fantasizing

But you will agree they both have what it takes.

I tend to agree with some of your arguments , I think when Chimamanda can trancend to writing successful plays , poems etc , we will all begin to take her seriously.

I'm enjoying Half of a yellow Sun, it kinda has an erotic tinge to it , in my own opinion.

I certainly need to read more Nigerian authors,seems you have a 'inner circle' view,who permit me is the real person behind Orikinla ?

@ Orikinla

I never tipped Chimamanda for the Nobel. I would place my money on Chris Abani, anyday. And yes, I agree with you that Helen Oyeyemi is much better than Chimamanda Adichie. What I said, and I insist on it, is that Chimamanda is better than all those writers you listed in your previous post, namely Okpewho, Iyayi, Ben Okri etc.

Akin Adesokan and Nwakama, they're in the same class with the also-rans, Iyayi & co. They are better off as academics, they can't actually do the real stuff. Plus Adesokan can be irritatingly verbose, he constantly plays to the gallery by using big words, I read Roots in the Sky, it was crap. The entire concept was good but I think he would have done better writing in Yoruba.  

Am surprised (and dissapointed) to find out that Okinba Launko is actually Femi Osofisan behind a mask. I've followed The Pirates serialised in Sunday Guardian for some time now. While his execution of the subject matter is flawless his use of language is quite unimaginative. Plus I don't actually get wht he's trying to say. A writer has to have a MESSAGE for society. Otherwise he needs to stick to writing plays.

@ Ndipe

Festus Iyayi left Uniben in controversial circumstances, but am not sure whether he was sacked or not. He was actually National President of ASUU for a period.

Chris Abani is very good. His preoccupation with the bitter dregs of society has not endeared him to the critic circle in Nigeria though. But someone sha has to give voice to the lower classes. Their reality is just as valid as everyone elses. And if you are speaking for them you have to tell it like it is, you don't pull any punches, you tell the entire story, warts (vulgar language) and all.

I notice you're quite particular about obscenity (so are our literary critics in Nigeria) But if the words weren't meant to be used they wouldn't even exist, would they now?

Orikinla:

In response to Doyin and Ziddy, I will not say a word.

Lest you forget, Adichie even failed to win the Caine Prize.
Her biggest prize, the Orange Broadband is for women only.

Her last novel did not even make it to the Booker Prize.

In the inner circles, the much younger Helen Oyeyemi is rated higher than Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie.

Adichie is like Achebe while Oyeyemi is like Soyinka and as Soyinka won the Nobel Prize, Oyeyemi will win it before Adichie.

Oyeyemi has written more works than Adichie.

Like Achebe, Adichie is getting over excited over the success of two of her novels.


The most qualified Nigerian writer for the Nobel Prize in Literature is Ben Okri.
But Pa Chinua Achebe is trying to appeal to win a consolatory nomination to get it.

Adichie has only published two novels and you are talking of the Nobel Prize?

@ Orikinla, You did not say A WORD, you said many words (LOL).

Once again, I am amazed by the vehemence of your onslaught on Achebe which now seems to have been passed down to Adichie.

I do not know if you arrived at your conclusions through some mathematical calculations or whether you used some perverse deductive reasoning to convince yourself that since "Oyeyemi is like Soyinka" and "Adichie is like Achebe", Oyeyemi will win the Nobel Prize before Adichie. However manner you might have reached this conclusion, it not only beggars belief, but shows that you must be unfamiliar with the works of both authors.

As both Oyeyemi and Adichie's literary works stand as at today, none of them are even remote contenders for the Nobel prize. The convoluted and labyrinthine byways of literature which makes the literary corpus of any author a serious contender for the Nobel prize is sadly missing in the works of these two.

Do not get me wrong, these two writers have a lot going for them and have produced brilliant pieces of works. However, the standard or benchmark used for popular literature is totally different to that used for serious literature and the banal mediocrity sometimes displayed in both writers works are not the stuff Nobel prizes are made of. The fact that Oyeyemi was paid hundreds of thousands of pounds does not automatically elevate her work to serious literature. It just shows that the publishers viewed her work commercially viable. I do not need to tell you that the likes of John Grisham, Jackie Collins, Sydney Sheldon or even the first billionaire author J.K Rowling stand a snowball's chance in hell of winning the Nobel prize despite monstrous commercial  successes.

I believe that the first poster who started this thread got carried away by Adichie's works. Uzodinma Iweala is someone to look out for. He looks promising.

Oh! And regarding the issue raised that Adichie did not win the Caine prize, might I point out that neither did Oyeyemi. Also, Oyeyemi despite being "rated higher than Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie" and despite having "written more works than Adichie" has not won the booker prize either. In fact, contrary to what you claim, when it comes to critical acclaim, Adichie is rated higher because her first book was shortlisted for the orange broadband and the John Llewellyn Rhys prizes as well as longlisted for the Booker prize. It was the winner of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Debut Fiction. Her second book won the Orange Broadband prize (although the Orange prize has been rubbished by literary heavyweights). Even if the Orange prize is  open only to women, at least, Oyeyemi is also a woman, I do not see her name on the list of Orange prize winners.

After all is said and done, let us be proud of our kinsmen and women. They continue to do us proud.

SMC,
My original reply was lost due to disruptions of the Internet connection. I write and post on the spot on the board.

British writers are better than American writers.

When any of the Nigerian writers in the US wins the Pulitzer Prize, I will nod.

Helen Oyeyemi did not win the Caine prize since the publishers never submitted any of her works for the contest.

Lest you forget, only publishers are allowed to submit entries for most of the coveted literary prizes and not Free For All (FFA).

Please, don't just base your analysis on mere reading their works.
Study and analyze them from the local to the global perspectives.

Helen Oyeyemi is not a prize writer.

If my parents were as literate as the parents of Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie and Chris Abani, the two writers would be coming to me to bow in respect to my genius, because I would have won all the literary laurels before them.

Being born in the hands of professors is better, greater and higher than being born in the hands of a Babalawo and office cleaner who had no clue if I was reading Tolstoi or Camus.

That is why I regard Helon Habila more than these privileged writers.

In America, creative writing has gone digital and the latest PCs can even write while you simply tell them your stories and they can come up with more colourful sentences and you don't worry about your shortcomings in English grammar anymore.

Orikinla:

SMC,

Helen Oyeyemi is not a prize writer.

'Nuff Said, I rest my Case!!!

I just googled Orikinla & i came up with Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima !

Haven't really read any of his books sha! But I appreciate all your analysis,

God bless Nigerian authors.

Anybody read half of A yellow Sun?

illusion2:

Anybody read half of A yellow Sun?

I have.

Oh well, Orikinla, what exactly is your grouse with Achebe for goodness sake? You seem to be repelled by his sucess, or rather, trying to tow down the literary acclaim that he has received in the western world. Adichie is following in its footsteps, and your remark about the literary writer, Adichie, coming to applaud for you if your parents were literates is high level display of arrogance and pride. Ke, has your work attained the same influence/publicity as those of Adichie?

Lest you forget I praised Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie long before most people joined the bandwagon.

She is celebrated in colourful terms in my Scarlet Tears of London.

I celebrate all Nigerians and Chinua Achebe is among my heroes.

When Soyinka won the Nobel Prize, Achebe did not celebrate him and even made a tribalistic remark.

There is this Igbo thing that Achebe wants to stress in politics and spills over into his intellectual bias.

Soyinka does not see things as Yoruba or Igbo.

I was a refugee child during Biafra and my recollection was even posted on Adichie's website, but I do need to hang the Biafran cross around my neck till kingdom come.

Soyinka sponsored the Christopher Okigbo Prize even before any Igbo decided to do anything that great in his memory.
I was in Enugu in 1987 to sign publishing contract with Fourth Dimension and stopped over in Port Harcourt to meet with the late Ken Saro-Wiwa on the publication of my collection of poems, The Return of Okigbo.

I hate tribalism and if you monitor the reports on Helon Habila, Chris Abani, Sefi Atta, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Helen Oyeyemi and other notable Nigerian writers of the new generation, I noticed that Chinua Achebe seems deliberately praising Adichie and has never even said anything tangible on Helen Oyeyemi.

A completely unknown Muslim poet was going to launch her collection of poems for children in Lagos, and Wole Soyinka came there at Chike's Nimbus Art Gallery on Raymond Njoku Street, in Ikoyi, Lagos.

I do not compare myself to other writers, because you cannnot put me in a box.

I am first and foremost an artist and a poet and also a producer/composer.
I prefer to be called an artist, because literature is part of the literary arts.

To me, Art is a spirit and the calling is for those who are willing.

I have 12 booklets of my drawings and the book of my water colours and paintings will be released soon.

We should celebrate all our writers, irrespective of tribe, class or creed.

It is not a competition.
It is a devotion.

I rest my case.

I do agree with you that Achebe did not display a spirit of sportmanship and even made some tribalistic comments on Soyinka's award of the Nobel Prize. As for his adulation of Adichie and his ignorance of others, oh well, I never factored in tribalism. Could be true, could be false. Who knows?

@Orikinla

Your modesty is truly endearing

@Orikinla
Although this thread was essentially meant for Chimamanda, I think we need more people like you.
So I move Orikinla for the Nobel

But honestly, I have always been concerned with Achebe's obvious tribalism, i always looked at it from the point of view of espousing his culture,roots etc,but when viewwed against the backdrop of issues esp the Nobel prize,i think you're right on the spot,

@SMc
From a critic's view point ,whats you take on HOAYS?

illusion2:

@SMc
From a critic's view point ,whats you take on HOAYS?

I did a review on Half of a Yellow Sun. You can see it here -

Half of a Yellow Sun

Scroll down and you'll see it. You may also want to look at this link: Why I Don't Like Half of a Yellow Sun for more comments by different people on the book.

interesting posts.

@orikinla i think i understand your point,but the thing is that achebe is like that with every body,he blast anyone who he deems fit and to an extent he thinks the ibos are like the chosen tribe by God,can you blame him,read his criticism on Heart of darkness by Joseph Conrad and i was forced to reckon with the guy but going by your point he does seem a little tribalistic.

and how in the hell don't you expect him to praise Adichie,she lived in the same house he once lived in so they feel kind of connected and stuff.when i read Purple hibiscus i was bawled over,made my friends read it was looking forward to reading HOAYS but was a bit off on that,too brutal and what exactly is her point,well can't deny that she is a good novelist but i want her to losen up a bit in her writing,put a little humour in it.

anyone ever read 26A  by Diana Evans?

SMC:

I did a review on Half of a Yellow Sun. You can see it here -

Half of a Yellow Sun

Scroll down and you'll see it. You may also want to look at this link: Why I Don't Like Half of a Yellow Sun for more comments by different people on the book.

@SMC,
Thanks for taking time to search out these threads.
Are you really from lesbos?

illusion2:

@SMC,
Thanks for taking time to search out these threads.
Are you really from lesbos?

You are welcome and to your question, I have no idea what you are talking about. LOL

hmmmmmm

where can i buy her books pls

You guys won't believe I just finished this book after all these weeks.

really interesting, I particularly liked the shifts between pre-war & during the war era.

Cool, I'll try to read purple hibiscus before I conclude on this talented lady again.

SMC:

I have no idea what you are talking about. LOL

The picture in your profile

Orikinla Osinachi is more likely to win the Nobel Prize in Literature before Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

The only Nigerian writer who is qualified to win the Nobel Prize after Chinua Achebe is Ben Okri.


Books
2012
Wild, Rider Books
2011
A Time for New Dreams, Rider Books
2009
Tales of Freedom, Rider Books
2007
Starbook, Rider Books
2002
In Arcadia, Weidenfeld & Nicolson
1999
Mental Fight, Phoenix House
1998
Infinite Riches, Phoenix House
1997
A Way of Being Free, Phoenix House
1996
Dangerous Love, Phoenix House
1995
Birds of Heaven, Orion
1995
Astonishing the Gods, Phoenix House
1993
Songs of Enchantment, Cape
1992
An African Elegy, Cape
1991
The Famished Road, Cape
1988
Stars of the New Curfew, Secker & Warburg
1986
Incidents at the Shrine, Heinemann
1981
The Landscapes Within, Longman
1980
Flowers and Shadows, Longman

Awards

2001
OBE
2000
Premio Palmi (Italy), Dangerous Love
1995
Crystal Award (World Economic Forum)
1994
Premio Grinzane Cavour (Italy), The Famished Road
1993
Chianti Ruffino-Antico Fattore International Literary Prize, The Famished Road
1991
Booker Prize for Fiction, The Famished Road
1988
Guardian Fiction Prize, Stars of the New Curfew, shortlist
1987
Paris Review/Aga Khan Prize for Fiction, Incidents at the Shrine
1987
Commonwealth Writers Prize (Africa Region, Best Book), Incidents at the Shrine