Chris Abani
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Chris Abani was born in Nigeria in 1966 and published his first novel at sixteen. He has been imprisoned, tortured, and sentenced to death for his literary activities. After fleeing Nigeria, he continued to write. He holds a BA in English, an MA in gender and culture, an MA in English, and a PhD in literature and creative writing. He is the recipient of a PEN USA Freedom-to-Write Award, a Prince Claus Award, a Lannan Literary Fellowship, a California Book Award, a Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, a PEN Beyond Margins Award, a PEN/Hemingway Award, and a Guggenheim Award. He is currently Board of Trustees Professor of English at Northwestern University, in Chicago and the editor of Eight New-Generation African Poets and New-Generation African Poets.
Becoming Abigail – 2006 – A selection of the Black Expressions Book Club, 2006 – A selection of the Essence Magazine Book Club, 2006 – A Chicago Reader Critic’s Choice, 2006 – A New York Times Editor’s Choice, 2007 – A New York Libraries Books For Te | Graceland – 2006 – Finalist for IMPAC Dublin Prize, 2005 – Winner, PEN Hemingway Book Prize, 2005 – Winner Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Debut Fiction, 2005 – Silver Medal, California Book Award for Fiction, 2005 – Finalist, Los Angeles Times Book Priz | Song for Night – 2007 – New York Times Editor’s Choice, 2008 – Finalist, Dayton Literary Peace Prize, 2008 – Winner, PEN Beyond the Margins Award | The Virgin of Flames – 2007 – A New York Times Editor’s Choice, 2007 – A Barnes and Noble Discovery Selection
Becoming Abigail | Controlled Decay | Globetrotter & Hitler’s Children | Graceland | Hands Washing Water | Kalakuta Republic | Sanctificum | Smoking the Bible | Song for Night: A Novella | The Secret History of Las Vegas: A Novel