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Ben Okri

Born

in Minna, Nigeria

March 15, 1959

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Poet and novelist Ben Okri was born in 1959 in Minna, northern Nigeria, to an Igbo mother and Urhobo father. He grew up in London before returning to Nigeria with his family in 1968. Much of his early fiction explores the political violence that he witnessed at first hand during the civil war in Nigeria. He left the country when a grant from the Nigerian government enabled him to read Comparative Literature at Essex University in England.

He was poetry editor for West Africa magazine between 1983 and 1986 and broadcast regularly for the BBC World Service between 1983 and 1985. He was appointed Fellow Commoner in Creative Arts at Trinity College Cambridge in 1991, a post he held until 1993. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literatu Poet and novelist Ben Okri was born in 1959 in Minna, northern Nigeria, to an Igbo mother and Urhobo father. He grew up in London before returning to Nigeria with his family in 1968. Much of his early fiction explores the political violence that he witnessed at first hand during the civil war in Nigeria. He left the country when a grant from the Nigerian government enabled him to read Comparative Literature at Essex University in England.

He was poetry editor for West Africa magazine between 1983 and 1986 and broadcast regularly for the BBC World Service between 1983 and 1985. He was appointed Fellow Commoner in Creative Arts at Trinity College Cambridge in 1991, a post he held until 1993. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1987, and was awarded honorary doctorates from the universities of Westminster (1997) and Essex (2002).

His first two novels, Flowers and Shadows (1980) and The Landscapes Within (1981), are both set in Nigeria and feature as central characters two young men struggling to make sense of the disintegration and chaos happening in both their family and country. The two collections of stories that followed, Incidents at the Shrine (1986) and Stars of the New Curfew (1988), are set in Lagos and London.

In 1991 Okri was awarded the Booker Prize for Fiction for his novel The Famished Road (1991). Set in a Nigerian village, this is the first in a trilogy of novels which tell the story of Azaro, a spirit child. Azaro's narrative is continued in Songs of Enchantment (1993) and Infinite Riches (1998). Other recent fiction includes Astonishing the Gods (1995) and Dangerous Love (1996), which was awarded the Premio Palmi (Italy) in 2000. His latest novels are In Arcadia (2002) and Starbook (2007).

A collection of poems, An African Elegy, was published in 1992, and an epic poem, Mental Flight, in 1999. A collection of essays, A Way of Being Free, was published in 1997. Ben Okri is also the author of a play, In Exilus.

In his latest book, Tales of Freedom (2009), Okri brings together poetry and story.

Ben Okri is a Vice-President of the English Centre of International PEN, a member of the board of the Royal National Theatre, and was awarded an OBE in 2001. He lives in London. ...more

74 posts
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benokri: I saw the Cosmic Destiny last night at The Scottish Storytelling Centre. Intriguing and a head spinner - come and see it!

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Published on August 16, 2012 04:41

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Average rating: 3.66 · 26,110 ratings · 2,856 reviews · 86 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Famished Road 3.73 avg rating — 13,566 ratings — published 1991 — 77 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Astonishing the Gods 3.53 avg rating — 1,516 ratings — published 1995 — 31 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Age of Magic 3.13 avg rating — 1,303 ratings — published 2014 — 18 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Freedom Artist 3.48 avg rating — 881 ratings — published 2019 — 23 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Songs of Enchantment 3.79 avg rating — 805 ratings — published 1993 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dangerous Love 3.74 avg rating — 616 ratings — published 1996	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Starbook 3.47 avg rating — 541 ratings — published 2007 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Prayer for the Living 3.59 avg rating — 459 ratings — published 2019 — 18 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Infinite Riches 3.84 avg rating — 359 ratings — published 1998 — 16 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Stars of the New Curfew 3.78 avg rating — 361 ratings — published 1988 — 21 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Series by Ben Okri

The Famished Road Trilogy (3 books)
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Ben Okri

3.74 avg rating — 14,728 ratings

Kerine Wint (she/her) is a freelance writer, editor, and reviewer of speculative fiction for publications including FIYAH literary...

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The World's Liter...: Our next country. 2013.	93	141	Dec 31, 2012 11:58PM
The World's Liter...: The Famished Road by Ben Okri	24	53	Feb 08, 2013 10:55AM
The Life of a Boo...: **ellie 12+2 2013**	64	254	Nov 11, 2013 09:10AM
Afro Book Club: February 2014 - West/Central Africa; and South America and Caribbean	13	69	Dec 17, 2013 05:56AM
Literary Exploration: The Hard Challenge - 2013	196	343	Dec 24, 2013 01:51AM
2025 & 2026 Readi...: August: Great Empires	110	200	Oct 03, 2014 10:53AM
Literary Exploration: Call for Nomination for Magical Realism Poll	21	51	Feb 04, 2015 02:41PM

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Ben Okri’s Followers (987)

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Ben Okri

74 postsBen Okri's Blog

benokri: I saw the Cosmic Destiny last night at The Scottish Storytelling Centre. Intriguing and a head spinner - come and see it!

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74 posts
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