When We Were Birds

Name: When We Were Birds
Brand: Penguin Random House NZ
SKU: 9780241991633
Price: 24.0 NZD
Availability: OutOfStock

Winner of the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature and the Author's Club First Novel Award 2023

By Ayanna Lloyd Banwo

0.0 (0 reviews)

3.77

( 8,882 ratings, 1,444 reviews)

Summary

When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo is a mystical tale set in Trinidad, exploring themes of love, death, and transformation. The story follows two protagonists whose paths intersect in a cemetery, where they confront ghosts of the past and the possibility of a new life. With its rich cultural backdrop and lyrical writing, the novel offers a compelling narrative about finding one's place in the world.
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Format: Paperback / softback

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you appreciate beautifully woven tales that intertwine the mystical with the gritty realities of life, particularly set in a richly detailed Caribbean landscape. The story offers a compelling blend of folklore, love, and destiny, exploring themes of death, transformation, and connection, making it an enchanting read for those who love character-driven narratives with a touch of the extraordinary.

"The introduction of a singularly stunning new voice in fiction, Ayanna Lloyd Banwo's When we were birds is a mythic love story set in contemporary Trinidad & Tobago about two young outsiders brought together by their connection with the dead"--

Description

Unmissable, uplifting debut fiction - a richly mythic love story set in the lush landscape of modern Trinidad.

Darwin is a down-on-his-luck gravedigger, newly arrived in the city to seek his fortune, young and beautiful and lost. Estranged from his mother, he is convinced that the father he never met may be waiting for him somewhere amid these bustling streets. Meanwhile, in an old house on a hill, Yejide's mother is dying. She is leaving behind a legacy that now passes to Yejide - the keeper of the dead. Darwin and Yejide will find one another in the ancient cemetery at the heart of the city, where trouble is brewing and destiny awaits...

Embedded with timeless myth and magic, this hypnotic literary debut is a masterpiece about loss and renewal, darkness and light - a reckoning with a grief that runs back generations and a defiant, joyful affirmation of hope.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

_Key reviews highlight the richly woven tapestry of Caribbean culture and magical realism in Ayanna Lloyd Banwo's debut. Critics praise the novel for its lush prose and evocative setting, intertwining themes of love, grief, and heritage in a Trinidadian narrative. Many appreciate the vivid characterisation and Banwo's lyrical exploration of the otherworldly, calling it both a moving love story and an ode to the island's myths and traditions._

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780241991633

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 09 February 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 16.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 206g

Pages: 288

Collections

Ayanna Lloyd Banwo Fantasy Fiction General Fiction Literary Fiction Penguin Books Romance Sci-Fi & Fantasy

About the Author

Ayanna Lloyd Banwo is a writer from Trinidad & Tobago. She is a graduate of the University of the West Indies and holds an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia, where she is now a Creative and Critical Writing PhD candidate. Her work has been published in Moko Magazine, Small Axe and PREE, among others, and shortlisted for Small Axe Literary Competition and the Wasafiri New Writing Prize. When We Were Birds is her first novel; she is now working on her second. Ayanna lives with her husband in London.

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