The author of Foreign Gods, Inc. and Arrows of Rain tells his own immigrant?s tale, where what is lost in translation is often as hilarious as it is harrowing.
Okey Ndibe first came to the US to act as founding editor of African Commentary, a magazine published by Chinua Achebe. He has taught at Brown University, Connecticut College, Simon's Rock College, Trinity College, and the University of Lagos (as a Fulbright scholar). He is the author of two novels, Arrows of Rain and Foreign Gods, Inc., and his award-winning journalism has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Hartford Courant. Mr. Ndibe lives in West Hartford, Connecticut, with his wife, Sheri, and their three children.
WINNER OF THE 2017 CONNECTICUT BOOK AWARD FOR NONFICTION
A HARTFORD COURANT BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BIG INDIE BOOK OF FALL 2016
Praise for Never Look an American in the Eye
"This page-turner memoir is an immigration narrative that begins
with a young man's lucky accident in Nigeria, proceeds with culture
shock at an American airport and carries us through the adjustment
to citizenship. At times it's laugh-out-loud funny. Its more
serious moments offer a poignant look at culture change in a land
of steady habits. This book changed my understanding of American
immigration."
-The Hartford Courant
"Okey Ndibe is a natural raconteur, and his tales of coming to
America are winsome and lyrical and absorbing. But within lies a
larger narrative: about the education of a new American-and a
writer's power to span continents in his imagination."
-Joshua Wolf Shenk, author of Lincoln's Melancholy and
Powers of Two
"Okey Ndibe brings a keen eye to his delightful and insightful new
memoir. His vision is clearer than 20-20. A writer who can arrive
in America, be falsely accused of bank robbery in just 10 days, and
still manage to keep his sense of humor is a man with a story to
tell. He writes it beautifully."
-Sally Denton, author of
The Profiteers: Bechtel and the Men Who Built the World
"Full of beautiful writing."
-WBUR Boston
"[Ndibe's] memoir could not be more enjoyable."
-CounterPunch
"[Nidibe's] candor and sense of humor make this an enjoyable
read."
-Minneapolis Star-Tribune
"Uplifting . . . [Ndibe's] writing can induce the sort of laughter
that make the ribs ache."
-Herald Scotland
"Ndibe's eminently readable tone is marked by humour, honesty and
humility, so that it's impossible to imagine anyone not liking him
tremendously by the end of the book."
-The Big Issue
"A thrill to read, and yet offers powerful insights into the
trials, prospects, and triumphs of being an immigrant in America.
In a style that is impressively skillful, Ndibe masterfully conveys
the odysseys of his early life in Nigeria and as well as his
immigrant life in the US. I have never laughed harder in recent
years when reading a book."
-SaharaReporters
"A generous, encompassing book about the making of a writer and a
new American."
-West Hartford News
"Ndibe shapes an entertaining and endearing tale from his many
struggles. This enjoyable and quick read is recommended for all
memoir lovers."
-Library Journal
"A moving and often laugh-out-loud account of one man's immigrant
experience."
-Booklist
"Seeing this country through Ndibe's eyes is a pleasure everyone
should have."
-LitReactor
Praise for Foreign Gods, Inc.
"Razor-sharp."
-The New York Times
"A story of sweeping cultural insight and absurd comedy."
-The Washington Post
"Unforgettable . . . A page-turning allegory about the globalized
world."
-Los Angeles Times
"A hard look at the American dream, which seems to be receding
further and further into the distance these days."
-GQ
"We clearly have a fresh talent at work here. It is quite a while
since I sensed creative promise on this level."
-Wole
Soyinka, winner of the Nobel Prize in
Literature
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