
EXPLORE THE WORLD OF WOCS
Walking on Cowrie Shells is “raucous and thoroughly impressive” with "stories to get lost in again and again” (New York Times). This kaleidoscopic collection is a New York Times Editor's Choice, Indie Next pick, recipient of starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and BookPage; and been feted in The New Yorker, Harper's Bazaar, Oprah Daily, The Root, NPR, Buzzfeed, and Thrillist; amongst others. The work garnered a 2022 Whiting Award and was a William Saroyan International Prize for Writing finalist. Originally published by Graywolf (North America/June 2021), there are three international editions available: Indigo Press (UK/Commonwealth/May 2022), BAKWA Books (Cameroon/Sept. 2023), and Über Muscheln Laufen published by Peter Hammer-Verlag (Germany/Sept. 2024).
The book focuses on the lives of hyphenated-Americans with multi-culti roots in the United States and Africa, spanning genres – literary realism, horror, mystery, YA, science fiction – and featuring complex, fully-embodied characters: tongue-tied linguistic anthropologists, comic book enthusiasts and even water goddesses. The stories aim to entertain readers while also offering a counterpoint to prevalent “heart of darkness” writing that too often depicts a singular “African” experience plagued by locusts, hunger, and tribal in-fighting.
PRAISE
“Full of stories that weave together love and friendship, horror and comedy, all with great deftness.”
— YAA GYASI, AUTHOR OF TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM
PRAISE
“A virtuosic, kaleidoscopic debut . . . It would be impossible to overstate how much I love this book, and its author.”
— Karen Russell, author of Orange World
PRAISE
“Funny and heartbreaking and wonderfully ferocious; it’s been ages since I’ve read sentences with this much verve and snap.”
— Carmen Maria Machado, author of In the Dream House
PRAISE
“Magical, funny, inventive and joyous, Nkweti’s tales remind us what storytelling can be.”
— Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Less
PRAISE
“Nana Nkweti’s words are dazzlingly energetic, world-ranging and straight-up brilliant.”
— Samantha Hunt, author of The Dark Dark
PRAISE
“ i finished this story collection and wondered, “is there anything nana nkweti can’t do?”
— deeshA philYAw, author of the secret lives of church ladies / new york times review of books
