Summary
Blackass is a novel by Nigerian author A. Igoni Barrett. It was released in the United Kingdom and Nigeria in 2015, and 2016 in the United States. It received mixed reviews.[1][2][3]
 First edition | |
| Author | A. Igoni Barrett |
|---|---|
| Country | Nigeria |
| Publisher | Chatto & Windus |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
Plot summary edit
Blackass is a story about a young Nigerian Furo Wariboko,[4] who wakes up on the eve of a job interview to discover that he has transformed into a white guy overnight. As he adjusts to his new appearance, he meets Arinze, who offers Furo a far more lucrative job than he expected.[5]
Reception edit
The Financial Times called Blackass "strange (and) compelling, (...with) something to tell us all", and explicitly compared it to Kafka's The Metamorphosis.[6] Writing in The Guardian, Helon Habila lauded Barrett for "his ability to satirise the ridiculous extents people, especially Lagosians, go to in order to appear important."[7] Claire Fallon for the Huffington Post found it to be "blunt (and) transparently written", but also "subtle (and) circumspect."[8] Aaron Bady of Okayafrica stated that it is "the most unapologetically Nigerian book that American publishers have published in a long time".[9]
In 2016 Blackass won the People's Literature Publishing House and the Chinese Foreign Literature Society's 21st Century Best Foreign Novel Award.[10] It was nominated for the inaugural FT/OppenheimerFunds Emerging Voices Awards,[11] the 2017 PEN Open Book Award,[12] the 2015 Kitschies Golden Tentacle Award,[13] and the inaugural Nommo Award for Best Novel.[14] In 2017 it was nominated for a Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in the debut fiction category.[15][16]
References edit
- ^ Schaub, Michael (6 March 2016). "An Audacious Transformation Bogs Down In 'Blackass'". NPR. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- ^ Habila, Helon (14 August 2015). "Blackass by A Igoni Barrett review – a cocktail of Kafka and comedy". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- ^ Day, Jon (14 August 2015). "'Blackass', by A Igoni Barrett". Financial Times. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- ^ "Blackass | Graywolf Press". www.graywolfpress.org. Retrieved 2023-07-28.
- ^ McKenna (2016-09-13). "Book Review: Blackass by A. Igoni Barrett". The Los Angeles Review. Retrieved 2023-07-28.
- ^ Jon Day, "‘Blackass’, by A Igoni Barrett" (review), Financial Times, 14 August 2015.
- ^ Helon Habila, "Blackass by A Igoni Barrett review – a cocktail of Kafka and comedy", The Guardian, 14 August 2015.
- ^ Claire Fallon, "The Bottom Line: ‘Blackass’ By A. Igoni Barrett", HuffPost Arts and Culture, 4 March 2016.
- ^ Aaron Bady, "A. Igoni Barrett’s “Blackass” And The Afropolitan Debate", Okayafrica, 10 March 2016.
- ^ "年度最佳外国小说”先睹为快" Archived 2019-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, Xinhua News Agency, 02 April 2017.
- ^ "Emerging Voices Award Longlist Announced", OppenheimerFunds, 16 June 2015.
- ^ "2017 PEN Open Book Award", PEN America, December 2016
- ^ "2015 Kitschies Short List" Locus Online, 22 February 2016.
- ^ "2017 Nommo Awards Shortlist", Locus Online, 4 April 2017.
- ^ "Hurston Wright Foundation Announces 2017 Legacy Awards Nominations", MahoganyBooks Blog, 30 June 2017
- ^ "Hurston/Wright Foundation | A. Igoni Barrett", Hurstonwright.org