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WINNER OF THE RSL SCRIPTORIUM AWARD
'A passionate, brave, lively and beautifully-written book about childhood, family, relationships, friendships and the tragedy of losing those we love.' Bernardine Evaristo
In this hybrid memoir, Okojie moves through the landscapes of the body and the mind: illness and depression, inheritance and grief, prejudice and belonging, memory and desire. She considers the ways trauma settles in the body, and the unexpected ways healing can travel through generations. Tracing her reconnection with her cultural heritage, finding in the music, movement and traditions of her family new ways of understanding herself.
With breathtaking prose and acute intelligence, she recalls the oddness and violence of an English girls' boarding school; the sacrifices and pleasures of a life in pursuit of art; and the indelible marks we make upon one another in our bids for connection.
Throughout, Okojie moves between the intimate and the expansive, harnessing a boundless imagination that celebrates the evolving body moving through life, with all its pain and glory. Quixotic Fissures is a powerful collection about the strange, beautiful work of transformation.
'Okojie's recollections paint the most heartwarming portrayal of an author and her community. This book is a celebration of black excellence and a reminder of how much is out there for us if we pay attention.' Tendai Huchu
Irenosen Okojie
Irenosen Okojie is a Nigerian British author whose work pushes the boundaries of form, language and ideas. Her novels, Butterfly Fish and Curandera, and short story collections, Speak Gigantular and Nudibranch, have won and been nominated for multiple awards. She won the 2020 AKO Caine Prize for her short story 'Grace Jones'. Her journalism has been featured in the New York Times, the Observer, the Guardian and the Huffington Post. She was a contributing editor for And Other Stories. She co-presented the BBC's Turn Up for The Books podcast alongside Bastille frontman Dan Smith and Simon Savidge. Her work has been optioned for the screen. She has also judged various literary prizes including being chair of judges for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the RSL Fellowship election panel. She was a judge for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. Formerly the vice chair of the Royal Society of Literature, she was named a visionary artist in Red magazine's 'The next 25 visionaries to watch' and awarded an MBE for services to Literature. She is the founder and director of Black to the Future Festival.
More by Irenosen Okojie
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