Under The Udala Trees - Softcover

'Boldly unadorned and utterly heartbreaking - Okparanta dares to tell a story that the world desperately needs to hear. Almost fable-like in its simplicity... Raw, emotionally intelligent and unflinchingly honest... A triumph' -- Taiye Selasi, author of Ghana Must Go
'[This] debut novel eloquently advocates resisting the narratives handed down by previous generations, and the unadorned eroticism of Ijeoma's relationships with other women is a rebuke to the doctrine that condemns them as an 'abomination'. Okparanta takes comfort in the capacity for people to change, but her postscript is poignant: in 2014, Nigeria criminalised the very relationships she portrays' --Lettie Kennedy, Observer

'A harrowing coming-of-age tale that, with elegant prose, captures the conflict of the time while illustrating how it resounds today. Okparanta shines a light on the plight of the gay community in Nigeria, where its condemnation is tragically not consigned to the history books' -- Antonia Charlesworth, Big Issue in the North

'A beautifully written book with some big themes... Yet it manages to have a unique perspective on [them]... This has high hopes for the Baileys Prize... Very smart, but [it] never loses that emotional core' -- Anna James, A Case for Books

'Powerful from page one... Okparanta's writing is perfectly paced and a delicate balance between the poetic and the blunt and sparse. Ijeoma is an exceptional character' -- Beth Townsend, Plastic Rosaries

'Okparanta's remarkable debut novel tackles big issues. Under the Udala Trees [recalls] the work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in its powerful interweaving of the personal and the political. Okparanta's simple, direct prose is interspersed with [...] allegory and folklore and [...] the dizzying scope of her storytelling keeps you gripped to the end' -- Lucy Popescu, Financial Times

'DIVA favourite and LAMBDA 2016 winner Chinelo Okparanta is a Nigerian-American author with an ongoing commitment to chronicling the experiences of LGBT people in Nigeria... In this coming-of-age narrative, Ijeoma is forced to navigate the competing forces pulling at her identity... Although her struggle is complicated and incredibly bleak, her resistance to societal expectations makes Ijeoma's story intensely relatable.' --DIVA magazine

'A brave novel seeking to challenge prejudice... Okparanta describes with clarity and seeming simplicity states that are not simple at all' -- Aida Edemariam, the Guardian
'A beautiful and tender coming of age story that opens during the Biafran Civil War and sees our heroine through first love, marriage and motherhood as she struggles with the demands of love and faith' -- Stylist

'The characters and the plot are utterly convincing... Okparanta's language choices are also impressive, moving between poetic and prosaic, depending on the requirements of the story... It's almost impossible to believe that Under the Udala Trees is a debut novel. It's beautifully crafted, gripping and heart-breaking with moments of brightness piercing the dark, hostile environment of Christian, patriarchal, homosexual Nigeria. I'll be astonished if this doesn't make the shortlist of every prize it's eligible for. Chinelo Okparanta is a major new voice in fiction' -- Naomi Frisby, Writes of Women
'[Okparanta's] pared-back plain prose [is] an effective counterblast to the drama and horror of war' -- Lesley McDowell, Sunday Herald
'A culture of sexual and gender oppression is vividly examined by the Nigerian author who has won the O. Henry Prize and Lambda Award for her short stories. [It] offers a memorable, evocative account of a woman's fight to assert her identity in a country that scorns her' -- Sarah Gilmartin, Irish Times
'[The] use of traditional story structure is interwoven with the simple Biblical language... Okparanta's writing is beautiful and moving' --Laura Tisdall blog

One day in 1968, at the height of the Biafran civil war, Ijeoma's father is killed and her world is transformed forever. Separated from her grief-stricken mother, she meets another young lost girl, Amina, and the two become inseparable. Theirs is a relationship that will shake the foundations of Ijeoma's faith, test her resolve and flood her heart. In this masterful novel of faith, love and redemption, Okparanta takes us from Ijeoma's childhood in war-torn Biafra, through the perils and pleasures of her blossoming sexuality, her wrong turns, and into the everyday sorrows and joys of marriage and motherhood. As we journey with Ijeoma we are drawn to the question: what is the value of love and what is the cost? A triumphant love story written with beauty and delicacy, Under the Udala Trees is a hymn to those who've lost and a prayer for a more compassionate world. It is a work of extraordinary beauty that will enrich your heart.