That summer, with intense physical therapy, Okorafor regained her ability to walk with a cane, but she was unable to continue her athletic career. It was the first time she had ever written anything creatively. Okorafor turned to writing small stories in the margins of a science-fiction book that she had. At age 19, she underwent spinal fusion surgery to straighten and fuse her spine a rare complication led to Okorafor becoming paralyzed from the waist down. She was diagnosed with scoliosis at the age of 13, a condition that worsened as she grew older. Due to her interest in insects, she desired to be an entomologist. ĭuring her years attending Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Illinois, Okorafor was a nationally known tennis and track star and excelled in math and the sciences. Her first name is Igbo for 'mother is good'. Okorafor is the third child in a family of four children and grew up in Chicago, Illinois, and would often travel to Nigeria to spend her holidays with her extended family. Nnedimma Nkemdili Okorafor was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1974 to Igbo Nigerian parents who travelled to America in 1969 to attend school but purportedly could not return to Nigeria due to the Nigerian Civil War. She is considered to be among the third generation of Nigerian writers. She is the recipient of multiple awards, including the Hugo Award, Nebula Award, Eisner Award and World Fantasy Award. Her writing is Africanfuturism and Africanjujuism, which is heavily influenced by her dual Nigerian and American heritage. She has also written for comics and film. She is best known for her Binti Series and her novels Who Fears Death, Zahrah the Windseeker, Akata Witch, Akata Warrior, Lagoon and Remote Control. Nnedimma Nkemdili ' Nnedi' Okorafor // ( listen) (formerly Okorafor-Mbachu born April 8, 1974) is a Nigerian-American writer of science fiction and fantasy for both children and adults. Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in AfricaĮisner Award for Best Graphic Album - Reprint University of Illinois, Chicago (MA, PhD) University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (BA)

Lagoon nnedi