Ben Okri facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ben Okri
OBE FRSL
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| Born | 15 March 1959 Minna, Nigeria |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | Nigeria UK |
| Genre | Fiction, essays, poetry |
| Literary movement | Postmodernism, Postcolonialism |
| Notable works | The Famished Road (1991), A Way of Being Free (1997), Starbook (2007), A Time for New Dreams (2011) |
| Notable awards | Booker Prize 1991 |
Sir Ben Okri is a famous writer, poet, and novelist who was born in Nigeria and later became a British citizen. He is known as one of the most important African authors of his time. People often compare his writing to that of other great authors like Salman Rushdie. In 1991, his novel The Famished Road won the Booker Prize, which is a very important award for books. Ben Okri was even knighted in 2023 for his amazing contributions to literature.
Contents
About Ben Okri
His Early Life and School
Ben Okri was born in Minna, Nigeria, on March 15, 1959. His father, Silver Okri, was a lawyer, and his mother, Grace, came from a royal family. When Ben was very young, his family moved to London so his father could study law. Ben went to primary school in London.
In 1966, his family moved back to Nigeria. His father helped people who couldn't afford legal services. Ben went to different schools in Nigeria. During this time, he saw the Nigerian civil war, and he heard stories from his friends about seeing spirits. These experiences later inspired many of his stories.
When he was 14, Ben realized he wanted to be a writer. He started writing articles about social and political issues. Some of his short stories were published in magazines and newspapers. He has said that some of his early writings, which criticized the government, made it necessary for him to leave Nigeria.
Moving to England in 1978
In 1978, Ben Okri moved back to England. He studied literature at Essex University. However, he lost his scholarship funding and became homeless for a while, sometimes sleeping in parks. He says this difficult time was "very, very important" for his writing, making him want to write even more.
Ben Okri's writing career really took off when he published his first novel, Flowers and Shadows, in 1980, when he was just 21. He also worked as a poetry editor for West Africa magazine and wrote for the BBC World Service.
His fame grew even more when his novel The Famished Road won the Booker Prize in 1991. He was the youngest person ever to win this award at 32 years old. He wrote much of this book in a flat in Notting Hill, London. He said that living there helped him find a calm and clear voice in his writing.
His Books and Stories
Since his first book in 1980, Ben Okri has become known around the world as one of Africa's top writers.
His most famous book, The Famished Road, is part of a series of three books. The other two are Songs of Enchantment (1993) and Infinite Riches (1998). These books tell the story of a spirit-child named Azaro, who lives through the social and political problems of an African country, much like Nigeria during the war.
It can be hard to put Ben Okri's writing into one specific group. Some people call it "postmodern," but others say it's more like "magical realism" because he writes about a spirit-world as if it's real. However, Ben Okri doesn't like the term "magical realism." He says his stories follow a "dream logic" and explore the question: "What is reality?"
He believes that reality has many layers, including legends, myths, ancestors, and spirits. He says that everyone sees reality differently, and that there's a mysterious part of life that we don't always understand. Ben Okri once said, "Beware of the stories you read or tell; subtly, at night, beneath the waters of consciousness, they are altering your world." This means that stories can change how we see the world without us even knowing it.
Besides novels, Ben Okri has also written collections of poetry, essays, and short stories. His short stories are often more realistic, but they still show Africans connecting with spirits. His poems and essays often talk about politics and how Africa and the world can solve modern problems.
He has also written plays and film scripts, including the text for the film N – The Madness of Reason, which won an award in 2015. In 2018, he adapted a famous book called The Outsider into a play.
In 2023, Ben Okri worked with a painter named Rosemary Clunie on an art exhibition called Firedreams. They combined large paintings with words. They had also worked together before on a book called The Magic Lamp: Dreams of Our Age in 2017.
What Influenced His Work
Ben Okri says his writing was influenced by both philosophical books from his father's library and other literature. He mentions writers like Francis Bacon and Michel de Montaigne. Some of his literary inspirations include Aesop's Fables, Arabian Nights, Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Coleridge's "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner". His poem Mental Fight is even named after a line from a poem by William Blake.
Ben Okri was also greatly influenced by the oral tradition of his people, especially his mother's storytelling. He said, "If my mother wanted to make a point, she wouldn't correct me, she'd tell me a story." His own experiences during the civil war in Nigeria also inspired many of his works.
Ben Okri has also written about important global issues, like the climate crisis. He believes that humans need to find new ways of thinking and new forms of art to deal with the big problems facing our world.
Awards and Honours
Ben Okri has received many awards and honours for his writing:
- He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2001.
- He was knighted in 2023 for his services to literature.
- 1987: Commonwealth Writers Prize (Africa Region, Best Book) – Incidents at the Shrine
- 1987: Aga Khan Prize for Fiction – The Dream Vendor's August
- 1991: Booker Prize – The Famished Road
- 1993: Chianti Ruffino-Antico Fattore International Literary Prize – The Famished Road
- 1994: Premio Grinzane Cavour (Italy) -The Famished Road
- 1995: Crystal Award (World Economic Forum)
- 1997: Honorary Doctorate of Literature, awarded by University of Westminster
- 2002: Honorary Doctorate of Literature, awarded by University of Essex
- 2003: Chosen as one of 100 Great Black Britons
- 2004: Honorary Doctor of Literature, awarded by University of Exeter
- 2008: International Literary Award Novi Sad (International Novi Sad Literature Festival, Serbia)
- 2009: Honorary Doctorate of Utopia, awarded by Universiteit voor het Algemeen Belang, Belgium
- 2010: Honorary Doctorate, awarded by School of Oriental and African Studies
- 2010: Honorary Doctorate of Arts, awarded by the University of Bedfordshire
- 2014: Honorary Fellow, Mansfield College, Oxford
His Published Works
Novels
- Flowers and Shadows (1980)
- The Landscapes Within (1981)
- The Famished Road (1991)
- Songs of Enchantment (1993)
- Astonishing the Gods (1995)
- Dangerous Love (1996)
- Infinite Riches (1998)
- In Arcadia (2002)
- Starbook (2007)
- The Age of Magic (2014)
- The Freedom Artist (2019)
- Every Leaf a Hallelujah (2021)
- The Last Gift of the Master Artists (2022)
Poetry, Essays, and Short Story Collections
- Incidents at the Shrine (short stories; 1986)
- Stars of the New Curfew (short stories; 1988)
- An African Elegy (poetry; 1992)
- Birds of Heaven (essays; 1996)
- A Way of Being Free (essays; 1997)
- Mental Fight (poetry: 1999)
- Tales of Freedom (short stories; 2009)
- A Time for New Dreams (essays; 2011)
- Wild (poetry; 2012)
- The Mystery Feast: Thoughts on Storytelling (2015)
- The Magic Lamp: Dreams of Our Age, with paintings by Rosemary Clunie (2017)
- Rise Like Lions: Poetry for the many (as editor; 2018)
- Prayer for the Living: Stories (2019)
- A Fire in My Head: Poems for the Dawn (2021)
- Tiger Work (2023)
Film
- N – The Madness of Reason (feature film, directed by Peter Krüger, 2014)
See also
In Spanish: Ben Okri para niños
