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Nnedi Okorafor is an international award-winning novelist of African-based science fiction, fantasy and magical realism for both children and adults.
Born in the United States to two Nigerian immigrant parents, Nnedi is known for weaving African culture into creative evocative settings and memorable characters. In a profile of Nnedi’s work titled, Weapons of Mass Creation, The New York Times called Nnedi’s imagination “stunning”. In 2015, Brittle Paper named her the African Literary Person of the Year.
Okorafor has written over ten books, including Binti (2015), Who Fears Death (2010), Zahrah the Windseeker (2005), and Akata Witch (2011).
In Nnedi's memoir, Broken Spaces and Outer Places (2019), she recounts her powerful journey from star athlete to sudden waist-down paralysis after undergoing a spinal fusion surgery to correct her scoliosis at the age of 19. Eventually regaining her ability to walk, her recovery period was long and it was during her rehabilitation process that she turned to writing for the first time. This memoir reminds us that what we think are our limitations have the potential to become our greatest strengths.
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