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Bernardine Evaristo

(b.1959)

Bernardine Evaristo was born in London to an English mother and Nigerian father. The fourth of eight siblings, she was raised in Woolwich, South London, and originally trained as an actress and worked in theatre.

Genres: Literary Fiction

Novels

   Lara (1997)
   The Emperor's Babe (2001)
   Soul Tourists (2005)
   Blonde Roots (2008)
   Mr Loverman (2013)
   Girl, Woman, Other (2019)

Collections

Island of Abraham (poems) (1993)
How Much the Heart Can Hold (2016) (with Carys Bray, Rowan Hisayo Buchanan, Grace McCleen, Donal Ryan, Nikesh Shukla and D W Wilson)

Series contributed to

Quick Reads 2010
Hello Mum (2010)

Anthologies edited

Nw15 (2007) (with Maggie Gee)
Ten (2010) (with Daljit Nagra)

Non fiction

Manifesto (2021)
Feminism (2021)

Awards

	Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction Best Book nominee (2009) : Blonde Roots
	Booker Prize Best Novel nominee (2019) : Girl, Woman, Other
	Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction Best Book nominee (2020) : Girl, Woman, Other
	Women's Prize For Fiction Best Novel nominee (2020) : Girl, Woman, Other

Bernardine Evaristo recommends

Bernard and the Cloth Monkey (1998)
Judith Bryan
"A quietly outstanding work of fiction . . . an exemplary novel."

Queenie (2019)
Candice Carty-Williams
"Candice Carty-Williams is a fantastic new writer who has written a deliciously funny, characterful, topical, and thrilling novel for our times."

Black Rain Falling (2019)
Jacob Ross
"Jacob Ross is a truly amazing writer. Black Rain Falling is an outstanding novel, it gripped me from the first page to the last."

The Infinite (2020)
(Leap Cycle, book 1)
Patience Agbabi
"A fascinating, original and smart adventure tale with a rhythmic prose style that leaps off the page into scintillating life. It has a magic all of its own."

The Mermaid of Black Conch (2020)
Monique Roffey
"A unique talent."

Rainbow Milk (2020)
Paul Mendez
"When did you last read a novel about a young, black, gay, Jehovah Witness man from Wolverhampton who flees his community to make his way in London as a prostitute? This might be a debut, but Mendez is an exciting, accomplished and daring storyteller with a great ear for dialogue. Graphic Erotica Alert! Don't read this book if you like your fiction cosy and middle-of-the-road."

The Vanishing Half (2020)
Brit Bennett
"The Vanishing Half is an utterly mesmerising novel. It seduces with its literary flair, surprises with its breath-taking plot twists, delights with its psychological insights, and challenges us to consider the corrupting consequences of racism on different communities and individual lives. I absolutely loved this book."

How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House (2021)
Cherie Jones
"A hard-hitting and unflinching novel from a bold new writer who tackles head-on the brutal extremes of patriarchal abuse."

Assembly (2021)
Natasha Brown
"Natasha Brown’s exquisite prose, daring structure and understated elegance are utterly captivating. She is a stunning new writer."

Young Mungo (2022)
Douglas Stuart
"Few novels are as gutsy and gut-wrenching as Young Mungo in its depiction of a teenage boy who finds love amid family dysfunction, community conflict and the truly terrible predations of adults. Vividly realised and emotionally intense, this scorching novel is an urgent addition to the new canon of unsung stories."

Say Her Name (2022)
Ryan Carter and Dreda Say Mitchell
"Dreda Say Mitchell has been flying the flag for crime writing for years."

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