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Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi is a recipient of the Windham-Campbell Prize and her first novel, Kintu, won the Kwani? Manuscript Project Prize in 2013 and was longlisted for the Etisalat Prize in 2014. Her story “Let’s Tell This Story Properly” was the global winner of the 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize. Jennifer lives in Manchester, UK with her husband and son.

Books by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

A Girl Is A Body of Water

by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

Praise

  • Irresistible.

    —The New York Times Book Review

  • Glorious.

    —The Washington Post

  • Mesmerizing.

    —O, The Oprah Magazine

  • Tender.

    —TIME

  • Exhilarating.

    —Lily King, author of Writers & Lovers

  • Riveting.

    —Maaza Mengiste, author of The Shadow King

  • Captivating.

    —Viet Thanh Nguyen, author of The Committed

  • A wonder—as clear, vivid, moving, powerful, and captivatingly unpredictable as water itself.

    —Namwali Serpell, author of The Old Drift

  • A novel bursting with resilience and warmth. . . . Mixing the mythic and the modern, happily ignoring formal neatness to encompass Uganda’s miscellaneousness, it’s an enthralling achievement.

    —Sunday Times

  • At turns rapturous and devastating. . . . Makumbi’s writing uplifts and inspires, evoking the grand tradition of folklore and stories passed down, one woman to the next.

    —Refinery29

  • Spellbinding.

    —World Literature Today

  • Makumbi’s rich language and detailed descriptions are a must-read.

    —HelloGiggles

  • Kirabo’s journey of self-discovery is at once inspiring and epic.

    —PopSugar

  • A magnificent blend of Ugandan folklore and more modern notions of feminism. . . . This book is a jewel.

    —Kirkus, Starred Review

  • With each new work, Makumbi cements her position as a writer of great influence in our time and for future generations.

    —Booklist, Starred Review

  • This beautifully rendered saga is a riveting deconstruction of social perceptions of women’s abilities and roles.

    —Publishers Weekly

  • Bewitching. . . . Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi is a mesmerizing storyteller, slowly pulling readers in with a captivating cast of multifaceted characters and a soupçon of magical realism guaranteed to appeal to fans of Isabel Allende, Julia Alvarez, or Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing.

    —Library Journal

  • Superb. An intoxicating tale that combines mythic and modern elements to make the headiest of feminist brews.

    —Irenosen Okojie, author of Nudibranch

  • In her characteristically page-turning and engaging style, Makumbi lays bare the complex power dynamics of patriarchy, capitalism and neocolonialism, not through academic jargon but via that most effective tool of education—storytelling. An achingly beautiful tale.

    —Sylvia Tamale

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