God's children are little broken things : stories

In nine exhilarating stories of queer love in contemporary Nigeria, God's Children Are Little Broken Things announces the arrival of a daring new voice in fiction"These stories are written with raw tender grace. They dramatize what love is like in a time when love is under siege... It is clear from this book that a serious literary talent has emerged." - Colm ToibinIn this stunning debut from one of Nigeria's most promising young writers, the stakes of love meet a society in flux. Generations collide, families break and are remade, languages and cultures intertwine, and lovers find their ways to futures; from childhood through adulthood; on university campuses, city centres, and neighbourhoods where church bells mingle with the morning call to prayer."Although he writes about queer lives and loves in Nigeria, Arinze Ifeakandu's voice is sensually alert to the human and universal in every situation. These quietly transgressive stories are the work of a brilliant new talent." - Damon Galgut, Booker Prize-winning author of The PromiseThese nine stories of queer male intimacy brim with simmering secrecy, ecstasy, loneliness and love in their depictions of what it means to be gay in contemporary Nigeria. A debut of emotional charge, with the touch of grace and the compassionate signature of an important new voice."The stories of Ifeakandu’s debut collection are nothing less than breathtaking and daring, each exploring queer relationships in all their nuanced and unpredictable configurations: secret romances, brief but passionate encounters, relationships that are tested by cultural pressures... Deftly capturing the richness and dangers of romantic connection, these stories complicate and reimagine queer narratives." - Kirkus Reviews ***Finalist for the 2022 Kirkus Prize for Fiction*** ***Longlisted for the 2023 Dylan Thomas Prize*** In nine exhilarating stories of queer love in contemporary Nigeria, God's Children Are Little Broken Things announces the arrival of a daring new voice in fiction . A man revisits the university campus where he lost his first love, aware now of what he couldn't understand then. A young musician rises to fame at the price of pieces of himself, and the man who loves him. Arinze Ifeakandu explores with tenderness and grace the fundamental question of the heart: can deep love and hope be sustained in spite of the dominant expectations of society, and great adversity. "A story collection, set in Nigeria, united by the theme of queer male intimacy. The stakes of loving within a society in flux are explored through the eyes of lovers and their families; from childhood through adulthood; on university campuses and in hospitals, central cities, neighborhoods on the outskirts. Deeply intimate portraits of love in danger come together in a compassionate, finely wrought examination of contemporary Nigeria"-- Provided by publisher.