Special Event: An Evening with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Join us for a special event!
On September 26, internationally-renowned novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie will be with us for a special discussion of her first novel, “Purple Hibiscus.” The event is part of the One Maryland One Book program produced by the Maryland Humanities Council – and it’s co-hosted by Montgomery College, Gaithersburg Book Festival, Montgomery County Public Libraries, and Montgomery County Public Schools.
One Maryland One Book is designed to bring together diverse people in communities across the state through the shared experience of reading the same book. This year’s selection is Adichie’s debut, “Purple Hibiscus,” a novel about the emotional turmoil of adolescence, the powerful bonds of family, and the bright promise of freedom.
Event Details
- WHAT: A Conversation with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- WHEN: Tuesday, September 26, 2017, 7 p.m. (Doors Open at 6pm)
- WHERE: Gaithersburg High School Auditorium, 101 Education Blvd., Gaithersburg, MD 20877
- BOOK SALES/SIGNING: Ms. Adichie’s books will be on sale at the event. She will be glad to sign them for you after the presentation.
- REGISTER: Register at this link. Please note: this event is first come, first served. Seating is limited. Registration does NOT guarantee a seat.
*This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited and will be available on a first-come/first-served basis.
For more information, visit: https://www.mdhumanities.org/programs/one-maryland-one-book/2017-author-tour/
About the Author:
Nigerian born Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the leading African writer of her generation. She grew up on the campus of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and left Nigeria for the U.S. at the age of 19. She has been awarded a Hodder fellowship at Princeton University (2005-2006) and a fellowship at the Radcliffe Institute of Harvard University (2011-2012). In 2008, Adichie earned a coveted MacArthur Genius Award.
Adichie’s work is read around the world, and has been translated into more than 30 languages. Her first novel “Purple Hibiscus” won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and her second novel, “Half of a Yellow Sun,” won the Orange Prize (now the Bailey’s Women’s Prize), which is the world’s top prize for female writers. Her 2013 novel “Americanah” has received numerous accolades, including the U.S. National Book Critics Circle Award. It was named one of The New York Times Top 10 Best Books of the Year. Her most recent book, “Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions,” was published in March 2017.
She also well known for her 2009 TED Talk, “The Danger of A Single Story,” now one of the top 10 most-viewed TED Talks of all time. Her 2012 TED talk, “We Should All Be Feminists,” started a worldwide conversation about feminism, especially after it inspired a song by Beyoncé. It was published as a book in 2014.
About the Book:
In “Purple Hibiscus,” 15-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a privileged life in Enugu, Nigeria. They live in beautiful house, with a caring family and attend an exclusive missionary school. They’re completely shielded from the troubles of the world. Yet, as Kambili reveals in her tender-voiced account, things are less perfect than they appear. Although her Papa is generous and well respected, he is fanatically religious and tyrannical at home—a home that is silent and suffocating. As the country begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili and Jaja are sent to their aunt, a university professor outside the city, where they discover a life beyond the confines of their father’s authority. Books cram the shelves, curry and nutmeg permeate the air, and their cousins’ laughter rings throughout the house. When they return home, tensions within the family escalate, and Kambili must find the strength to keep her loved ones together.