Helen Oyeyemi

FRSL
Helen Oyeyemi in January 2021
Helen Oyeyemi in January 2021
BornHelen Oyeyemi
(1984-12-10) 10 December 1984
Ibadan, Nigeria
OccupationWriter
GenreFiction
Notable worksWhat Is Not Yours Is Not Yours (2016)
Notable awardsPEN Open Book Award

Helen Oyeyemi FRSL (born 10 December 1984) is a British novelist and writer of short stories.

Life

Oyeyemi was born in Nigeria and was raised in Lewisham, South London from when she was four.[1][2] Oyeyemi wrote her first novel, The Icarus Girl, while studying for her A-levels[3] at Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School. She attended Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.[4] Since 2014 her home has been in Prague.[2][5]

Career

While she was in college, Oyeyemi's plays Juniper's Whitening and Victimese were performed by fellow students and later published by Methuen in 2014.[4][6] In 2007, Bloomsbury published Oyeyemi's second novel, The Opposite House, which is inspired by Cuban mythology.[7][8] Her third novel, White Is for Witching, was published by Picador in May 2009. It was a 2009 Shirley Jackson Award finalist[9] and won a 2010 Somerset Maugham Award.[10] In 2009, Oyeyemi was recognized as one of the women on Venus Zine's "25 under 25" list.[11]

Her fourth novel, Mr Fox, was published by Picador in June 2011,[12] In 2013 she was included in the Granta Best of Young British Novelists list.[13] Her fifth novel, Boy, Snow, Bird, was published by Picador in 2014.[14][15] Boy, Snow, Bird was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in 2014.[16]


Oyeyemi published What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours, a story collection, in 2016.[17][18] What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours won the 2016 PEN Open Book Award: for an exceptional book-length work of literature by an author of colour.[19]

Gingerbread, a novel, was published 5 March 2019.[20] Peaces, a novel, was published 1 April 2021.[21]

Judging Roles


Oyeyemi was a judge on the Booktrust Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for 2015[22]

Oyeyemi served as a judge for the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize.[23]

Oyeyemi was a judge for the 2018 International Booker Prize.[24]

Oyeyemi was a judge for the 2023 Goldsmiths Prize, along with Tom Lee (chair), Maddie Mortimer and Ellen Peirson-Hagger.[25]


Invited Lectures

On April 25th 2017, Oyeyemi delivered "Shine or Go Crazy", focused on Korean television dramas at Seattle Arts and Lectures, Seattle. A 'reading list' of the shows mentioned in her talk was published following the lecture.[26]

In 2023, Oyeyemi delivered the annual New Statesman/Goldsmiths Prize lecture at the Southbank Centre, London.[27] Her theme was "Trying".

Oyeyemi will deliver the 2024 Richard Hillary Memorial Lecture at Trinity College, Oxford.[28]

Bibliography

Novels

Plays

  • Juniper's Whitening (2004)[34]
  • Victimese (2005)[35]

Short story collections

  • What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours (2016)[36]

References

  1. ↑ Quinn, Annalisa (7 March 2014). "The Professionally Haunted Life Of Helen Oyeyemi". NPR. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  2. 1 2 Hoggard, Liz (2 March 2014). "Helen Oyeyemi: 'I'm interested in the way women disappoint one another'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  3. ↑ Jordan, Justine (11 June 2011). "Mr Fox by Helen Oyeyemi – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
  4. 1 2 bloomsbury.com. "Juniper's Whitening". Bloomsbury. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Bradshaw, M. René (16 March 2016). "What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi". The London Magazine. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  6. ↑ "Prolific writer Oyeyemi shortlisted for BBC short story award | Premium Times Nigeria". 18 September 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  7. ↑ "Oyeyemi's 'Opposite House'". Tell Me More. 26 June 2007. NPR.
  8. ↑ D'Erasmo, Stacey (27 February 2014). "Helen Oyeyemi's 'Boy, Snow, Bird' turns a fairy tale inside out". The Los Angeles Times.
  9. ↑ "2009 Shirley Jackson Awards Winners". The Shirley Jackson Awards. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  10. ↑ "Helen Oyeyemi - Literature". literature.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  11. ↑ Woman.NG (16 March 2016). "You'll Want To Get Helen Oyeyemi's New Book 'What is Not Yours is Not Yours' After Reading These Reviews". Woman.NG. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  12. ↑ Sethi, Anita (13 May 2012). "Mr Fox by Helen Oyeyemi – review". The Observer.
  13. ↑ "Granta 123: Best of Young British Novelists 4". Granta (123). 2013. Archived from the original on 17 April 2013.
  14. ↑ Clark, Alex (22 March 2014). "Boy, Snow, Bird review – Helen Oyeyemi plays with myth and fairytale". The Guardian.
  15. 1 2 Quinn, Annalisa (7 March 2014). "The Professionally Haunted Life of Helen Oyeyemi". NPR.
  16. ↑ Swanson, Clare (5 March 2015). "L.A. Times Book Prize Finalists Announced". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  17. ↑ Oyeyemi, Helen (8 March 2016). What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours. Place of publication not identified: Riverhead Books. ISBN 9781594634635.
  18. ↑ Van Den Berg, Laura (18 March 2016). "'What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours,' by Helen Oyeyemi". The New York Times.
  19. ↑ "2017 PEN America Literary Awards Winners", Pen America, 22 February 2017.
  20. ↑ Charles, Ron (26 February 2019). "Review | Helen Oyeyemi's 'Gingerbread' recipe: Fairy tales with a dash of surrealism". The Washington Post. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  21. 1 2 Smith, Josh (2020). "Helen Oyeyemi moves to Faber for Peaces". Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  22. ↑ Irvine, Lindesay (27 May 2015). "Jenny Erpenbeck Wins Independent Foreign Fiction Prize". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  23. ↑ Medley, Mark (14 January 2015). "The Giller Prize expands its jury to five people". The Globe and Mail.
  24. ↑ "Helen Oyeyemi | The Booker Prizes". thebookerprizes.com. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  25. ↑ "The Goldsmiths Prize 2023". Gold.ac.uk. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  26. ↑ Seattle Arts and Lectures. "Helen Oyeyemi's K Drama List". Seattle Arts and Lectures.
  27. ↑ Southbank Centre. "Helen Oyeyemi: Trying". Southbank Centre. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  28. ↑ Talks. "Helen Oyeyemi: Richard Hillary Memorial Lecture". Talks.ox.ac.uk.
  29. ↑ Downer, Lesley (17 July 2005). "The Icarus Girl: The Play Date From Hell". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  30. ↑ Shamsie, Kamila (12 May 2007). "Review: The Opposite House by Helen Oyeyemi". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  31. ↑ Ervin, Andrew (8 September 2009). "Miri's Hunger". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  32. ↑ Bender, Aimee (28 October 2011). "A Writer of Slasher Books Finds More Than a Muse". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  33. ↑ "Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi". Pan Macmillan. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  34. ↑ "Juniper's Whitening by Helen Oyeyemi", Methuen.
  35. ↑ Brown, Helen (9 January 2005). "A writer's life: Helen Oyeyemi". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  36. ↑ Berg, Laura Van Den (18 March 2016). "What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours, by Helen Oyeyemi". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
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