Now optioned as a TV series for HBO, with executive producer George R. R. Martin!
An award-winning literary author enters the world of magical realism with her World Fantasy Award-winning novel of a remarkable woman in post-apocalyptic Africa.
In a post-apocalyptic Africa, the world has changed in many ways; yet in one region genocide between tribes still bloodies the land. A woman who has survived the annihilation of her village and a terrible rape by an enemy general wanders into the desert, hoping to die. Instead, she gives birth to an angry baby girl with hair and skin the color of sand. Gripped by the certainty that her daughter is different—special—she names her Onyesonwu, which means "Who fears death?" in an ancient language.
It doesn't take long for Onye to understand that she is physically and socially marked by the circumstances of her conception. She is Ewu—a child of rape who is expected to live a life of violence, a half-breed rejected by her community. But Onye is not the average Ewu. Even as a child, she manifests the beginnings of a remarkable and unique magic. As she grows, so do her abilities, and during an inadvertent visit to the spirit realm, she learns something terrifying: someone powerful is trying to kill her.
Desperate to elude her would-be murderer and to understand her own nature, she embarks on a journey in which she grapples with nature, tradition, history, true love, and the spiritual mysteries of her culture, and ultimately learns why she was given the name she bears: Who Fears Death.
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"A coming of age story about a girl named Onyesonwu, who lives in a war ravaged and prejudiced filled world but who comes into her own then strives to rewrite her civilization's history. Set in "a place that used to be the Sudan" at a time which could be set in the future or the recent past, with echoes of the conflict in Darfur. A difficult read because of some of the subject matter it deals with (genocide, violence, violence against women, racism, genital mutilation, child soldiers) but powerfully written and epic in scope. In the story there is also hope, love, loyalty, empowerment, discovery, courage, feminism and community. There are a lot of magic and mythic (animism / shamanism / Yoruban) elements which add a lot of color and depth to the narrative. When characters shape shift into birds it creates some levity for the reader as well. The main character is flawed in a sense; she is powerful and very full of anger and a desire for vengeance that makes her similar in some ways to her foes. But she is heroic and that mix is what makes her so compelling. Her group of childhood friends ground her and make her and the action of the novel more well rounded. I would definitely recommend this book to others. Winner of the World Fantasy Award."
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Sarah (5 out of 5 stars)