Ben Okri is a celebrated poet and novelist whose work often draws from his experiences with the political violence and chaos he witnessed during the Nigerian civil war. His early fiction focuses on young men trying to make sense of the disintegration of their families and country. Okri is known for his profound explorations of the human psyche and the spiritual dimensions of life, particularly in his novels that delve into the complex reality of being a 'spirit child.' His writing is characterized by magical realism and a lyrical prose that draws readers into rich, atmospheric worlds.
This collection of short stories is set in Nigeria and reflects the mad, exotic and often dangerous chaos which reigns there. They include jumbled up voodoo stories, stories of shanty towns and of men from the villages seeking their fortunes in the streets and filthy gutters of the new towns.
This collection features 36 remarkable stories from prominent African writers, showcasing a diverse range of voices and styles over the past century. Curated by Ben Okri, a Booker Prize-winning Nigerian poet and novelist, the anthology highlights the richness of African literature and offers readers a profound exploration of the continent's narratives and themes.
In this inspirational volume, the Booker Prize-winning author of THE FAMISHED ROAD makes essays into an art form. The ten pieces in this beautifully crafted collection range from the personal to the analytical, including a meditation on the role of the poet, a study of Picasso's Minotaur, a paean to human freedom in honour of Salman Rushdie, and an appraisal of fellow-Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe. Lyrical, imaginative and provocative, A Way Of Being Free confirms Ben Okri's status as one of the most inspiring of contempory writers.
In the hustle of Lagos, a series of disturbing events strip the young Jeffia Okwe of his innocence and reveal the ruthlessness of his own father. The tragic climax of the tale leaves Jeffia cleansed of the sins of his father, ready for adult life and optimistic about the future.
Two actors, a thousand characters, and the story of how a kingdom is changed... An epic new adaptation of the 4,000-year-old Egyptian poem about the Warrior King, Sinuhe written by Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri that captures the essence of humanity and the complexities of immigration. This edition of Changing Destiny is published to coincide with the world premiere performance at London's Young Vic Theatre, directed by Young Vic Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah. Ben Okri is a poet, novelist, essayist, short story writer, anthologist, aphorist, and playwright. He has also written film scripts. His works have won numerous national and international prizes, including the Booker Prize for Fiction. He has also received many honorary doctorates for his contribution to Literature, and his novel, Astonishing the Gods, was selected as one of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped Our World' Recently, his Grenfell poem, on Channel Four's YouTube page, has received more than 6 million views.
An epic poem touching on issues of racism, intolerance and environmental destructions.
'Both a work of lyrical imagination and a warning about the dangers we will face unless we take immediate action' New Yorker 'An artist's ardent plea for change' Kirkus This earth that we love is in grave danger because of us. Forests are becoming legends, rare as unicorns...If we continue to live as we do now, there will be no world left for us to fix, Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri argues in this evocative collection. He imagines messages - sent to us from beyond the end, from those who saw it coming - exhorting us to change now.Combining fiction, essay and poetry, Tiger Work displays Okri's classic blend of storytelling, fantasy and magic.
In this environmental fairytale made for our times, a little girl must go alone into the forest to find a special flower to cure her sick mother. Written to be read by adults and children, from the Booker Prize-winning author of The Famished Road.
Topical and timely, Booker Prize-winning author Ben Okri's new collection of short stories blur parallel realities and walk the line between darkness and magic. Is what you see all there is? Look again. Playful, frightening, even shocking – the stories in this collection blur the lines between illusion and reality. This is a writer at the height of his power, making the reader think, making them laugh, and sometimes making them want to look away while holding their gaze. Stories here are set in London, in Byzantium, in the ghetto, in the Andes, in a printer's shop in Spain. The characters include a murderer, a writer, a detective, a man in a cave, a man in a mirror, two little boys, a prison door, and the author himself. There are twenty-three stories in all. Each one will make you wonder if what you see in the world is all there is...
This is a startling novel about different kinds of riches and different forms of power. It opens another chapter in the adventures of Azaro, the celebrated spirit-child of The Famished Road , winner of the Booker Prize. By turns thunderous and tender, it will resonate in the mind and heart of the reader for a long time.
In the communal world of the compound in which he lives, Omovo has many friends and some enemies, but most important of all there is Ifeyiwa, a beautiful young married woman who he loves with an almost hopeless passion - not because she doesn't return his love, but because they can never be together.
Beautifully repackaged at a fantastic price for the limited print run Vintage Booker promotion Azaro is a spirit child who is born only to live for a short while before returning to the idyllic world of his spirit companions. Now he has chosen to stay in the world of the living. This is his story.
A collection of eight short stories that touch on different aspects of life within Nigeria and in the World at large. Contents: Laughter beneath the bridge Converging city Disparities Incidents at the shrine Masquerades A hidden history Crooked prayer The dream-vendor's August
A group of angry and ill-assorted people accept an invitation to make a journey. Inspired by a painting and financed by a mysterious benefactor, they set off to discover the real Arcadia. Or what remains of it. Their journey begins in ignorance and chaos at Waterloo Station and takes them through superstition and myth to harmony. In the Louvre, in front of Poussin's masterpiece, they begin to understand.
One great thought can change the dreams of the world. One great action, lived out all the way to the sea, can change the history of the world. The adventures of Azaro, the spirit child, continue. From the bestselling author of The Famished Road comes this
These poems range across a wide variety of subjects, from the autobiographical to the philosophical, from war to love, from nature to the difficulty of truly seeing.
Exploring the aftermath of heartbreak, the protagonist Viv organizes a unique party to commemorate the anniversary of her first husband's departure. Alongside her hesitant second husband Alan and friends Beatrice and Stephen, she aims to create a space for those wounded by love. The event's highlight is the appearance of Madame Sosostris, a legendary fortuneteller linked to T.S. Eliot, who may hold the key to healing their emotional scars. Set in a mystical French wood, the gathering promises both disguise and revelation.
One of 2019's most anticipated novels in THE TIMES, IRISH TIMESand GUARDIAN. 'Where fiction's master of enchantments stares down a real horror, and without blinking or flinching, produces a work of beauty, grace and uncommon power' MARLON JAMES, winner of the Man Booker Prize 2015. An impassioned plea for freedom and justice, set in a world uncomfortably like our own, by the Man Booker-winner Ben Okri. In a world uncomfortably like our own, a young woman called Amalantisis arrested for asking a question. Her question is this: Who is the Prisoner? When Amalantis disappears, her lover Karnakgoes looking for her. He searches desperately at first, then with a growing realization. To find Amalantis, he must first understand the meaning of her question. Karnak's search leads him into a terrifying worldof lies, oppression and fear at the heart of which lies the Prison. Then Karnak discovers that he is not the only one looking for the truth. The Freedom Artistis an impassioned plea for justiceand a penetrating examination of how freedom is threatened in a post-truthsociety. In Ben Okri's most significant novel since the Booker Prize-winning The Famished Road, he delivers a powerful and haunting call to arms. 'Ben Okri is that rare thing, a literary and social visionary, a writer for whom all three - literature, culture and vision - are profoundly interwoven' ALI SMITH.
A collection of new and recently completed poems by Ben Okri covering topics of the day, such as the refugee crisis, racism, Obama, the Grenfell Tower fire, and the Corona outbreak.
A novel about life in the time immediately before the arrival of the Atlantic slavers. Two lovers meet for the first time. One is the son of a king, struggling to find his place in the world, the other is the gifted daughter of a master craftsman from a famous but secretive tribe...
We are listeners at the oracle. Those who truly hear are touched and changed. At one level, Starbook tells the delicate story of a prince and a maiden who are both tested by trials in a mythical land where art, initiation and dynamic stillness are supremely important.
From Booker Prize-winner Ben Okri: a deceptively simple modern fable with an ancient origin. A young man finds himself living among invisible beings who have built a utopia based on one principle: that we must repeat or suffer every experience until we experience it properly and fully for the first time. 'The hero of this novel finds what he did not seek, and goes where he did not intend to go. As I did in writing it.' BEN OKRI.
From Booker Prize-Winner Ben Okri. A group of world-weary travellers discover the meaning of life in a mysterious mountain village. Eight film-makers arrive at a small Swiss hotel on the shores of a luminous lake. Above them, strewn with lights that twinkle in the darkness, looms the towering Rigi mountain. Over the course of three days and two nights, the travellers will find themselves drawn in to the mystery of the mountain reflected in the lake. One by one, they will be disturbed, enlightened, and transformed, each in a different way. The Age of Magic has begun. Unveil your eyes. ALSO BY BEN OKRI: Astonishing the Gods, In Arcadia, A Way of Being Free, Dangerous Love.
The collection showcases a powerful exploration of Africa's complexities, offering vibrant and nuanced portraits that challenge oversimplified narratives of suffering. Through evocative language, the poems celebrate the traditions and resilience of African people, presenting a tapestry of strength and hope. Originally published in 1992, this debut work by the Booker Prize-winning author highlights the rich cultural landscape of the continent, inviting readers to engage with its deeper realities.
This text contains two inspirational essays from the author of "The Famished Road", on the meaning of language and its power to shape our lives. The work presents an alternative spiritual response to the problems of the present day.
Erfüllt von den Geräuschen und Gerüchen Afrikas, dem Lärm einer aus allen Nähten platzenden Großstadt, erzählt dieser fesselnde Roman die Geschichte Omovos, eines jungen Mannes in den Slums von Lagos. Omovo ist Maler und liebt Ifeyiwa, die gegen ihren Willen mit einem älteren Mann verheiratet ist ... Eine wahrhaft bewegende Liebesgeschichte und zugleich, in Szenen voller Tragik und Komik, ein Bild von der Zerrissenheit Nigerias. Eine wunderbare Lovestory im Labyrinth der Slums.
In deze bonte verzameling literaire teksten vol humor en melancholie worden talrijke grenzen overschreden. Letterlijke grenzen tussen landen en culturen, maar ook figuurlijke tussen muziek en politiek, liefde en verraad, gezag en clandestiniteit. Op humoristische wijze overtroeft een doortastende vrouw haar verkrachters; een overledene vertelt hoe hij zijn tijd in de hemel slijt. Melancholieke herinneringen aan de jazzsaxofonist John Coltrarie in New York worden afgewisseld met herinneringen aan een bevriende junk uit de 'scene' in Belgrado. Een zakenvrouw wreekt zich op haar Tivale, de schoonheidskoningin van Zweden; een wanhopige man vermoordt Zijn VTOUW OM zijn eer te redden. Een vertaler vergeet zijn eed en richt daarmee groot onheil aan; een man steelt juwelen en verandert daardoor in een held. De verhalen, gedichten, songteksten en een toneelstuk zijn stuk voor stuk geïllustreerd en voorzien van biografische informatie en foto's van de auteurs. Debuterende en reeds succesvolle schrijvers Uit alle delen van de wereld leverden voor deze bundel originele bijdragen die nog nooit eerder in het Nederlands zijn gepubliceerd.
Una raccolta di storie africane, di grande forza evocativa, in cui il magico realismo di Ben Okri, insignito del ''Booker Prize'' nel 1991, ci dà la chiave di lettura del travagliato sviluppo di un continente. Un intenso scenario africano dove la gente mantiene ancora forti legami con la cultura e la religione animista dei villaggi. Sotto un sole implacabile o nella stagione delle piogge, la vita a Lagos è intensa, a volte drammatica, ma ricca di calda umanità e anche di poesia. La narrazione travalica il reale, giungendo inarrestabile in un universo onirico intessuto delle mitologie ancestrali che abitano l'anima e l'immaginario del popolo nigeriano.
Den unge gutten Omovo lever i utkanten av Lagos, Nigeria. Det er midt i 1970-årene. Moren er død og to brødre reist bort i protest mot den voldsommefaren. Alkohol, vold og utroskap hører med i den fattige hverdagen. Omovo arbeider på kontor, men det er malingen som virkelig betyr noe for ham. Alt han ser og opplever strever han med å bearbeide til kunst. I det urolige samfunnet, like etter borgerkrigen, strømmer bildene på. Men ikke bare de vonde og vanskelige. Omovo forelsker seg i Ifeyiwa, som er ung og vakker, men giftet bort til en annen, mye eldre mann. Han vil gjerne male henne, hanvil treffe henne, og hun vil gjerne treffe ham. Dette er Ben Okris fjerde bok på norsk, den forrige kom i 1996, og het "Drømmeselgerens august".
Barvité příběhy ukazují realitu pro Evropana těžko pochopitelné současné Afriky. Nigerijský spisovatel Ben Okri žije trvale v Londýně. Česká čtenářská obec se mohla seznámit s jeho románem Hladová cesta (Volvox Globator 2000), za který dostal Booker Prize. Předkládaná knížka povídek nese název podle nejdelší a snad i formálně nejzávažnější povídky o chudém mladíkovi, absolventu střední školy, který se v Lagosu živí jako pouliční prodavač pochybných léků. Ben Okriho příběhy jsou inspirovány současnými politickými a ekonomickými poměry v Africe a nevyhýbají se ani takovým skutečnostem, jako jsou občanské a kmenové války, převraty, korupce, masová nezaměstnanost, násilí a neúcta k lidskému životu. V druhé vrstvě povídek Okri popisuje zážitky v jiných světech našeho vesmíru na základě jorubské mytologie. Autor sám o své tvorbě říká, že je realistická, ale jeho realismus má „mnoho dalších rozměrů“.
