Shamiso
Brian Chikwava
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From the publisher
Zimbabwean girl meets gender-fluid Afro-Brit boy. They can’t stand each other but fall hopelessly in love, before being traumatised into separate paths by their mutual prejudices.
Shamiso is a young girl, thoughtful but uncertain, taken by her family from rural Zimbabwe to bustling Harare. As she grows up there, she watches the world: her distant, stern father, her angry stepmother and her father’s strange, loving cousin, the elderly Jimson, who encourages Shamiso to discover her passion for art, her place in their family, and her voice in the world.
When she takes a leap to leave Zimbabwe behind for Brighton, England, Shamiso must find a new family and a new way of living. There she falls in love for the first time with George – whose female identity, Georgie, is everything Shamiso has ever wanted or needed. But can such happiness last, when neither of them knows yet who they truly are?
Quirky, challenging and mischievous, this tender coming-of-age story brilliantly examines selfhood, love and the many shapes family can take. From first moments to final steps, Shamiso is a thought-provoking, blazing work of modern existence and all its contradictions.
“Witty, inventive and sensual”
Abdulrazak Gurnah, Winner Of The Nobel Prize For Literature
“A spare, propulsive tale that boldly vaults beyond convention. Shamiso is captivating and utterly original, a vivid reminder of the capacious possibilities of storytelling”
Tope Folarin
”Shamiso is a jewel of a novel that dazzles with ideas on migration, grief, love, time, language and meaning, so economically written that repeat reads are not only rewarded but demanded. It’s a pleasure to read a novel in which such care and consideration is given to each word, each moment”
Mendez, Author Of Rainbow Milk
“I was utterly captivated by Shamiso. With prose lucid as water, Chikwava gives us one of the most unforgettable characters in recent memory. She’s flesh and blood on the page, all I can ask for, and it’s as rare as it is beautiful”
Peter Orner
“Chikwava gifts us a compelling story of self-discovery, identity and belonging. He writes with such precision and wit that every sentence lands like a well-aimed arrow - sharp, purposeful and impossible to ignore. The novel is a sheer delight to read”
Chika Unigwe