10 Things you Should Know About Chimamanda Adichie

Nigerian author Chimamanda Adichie needs little or o introduction. However, here are 10 things you probably do not know about her.

1. Chimamanda’s heroes are ordinary women

Speaking with Vogue Magazine, the award-winning author was asked if she sees herself as a feminist heroine and in her words; “The real heroes are the nameless women in the market, who are holding their families together. They are traders and their husbands are out drinking somewhere… It’s those women I admire. I am full of admiration for them.”

2. She hails from a family of strong women

Adichie was raised amongst strong women. Her mother was the University of Nigeria’s first female registrar. She served as the school’s head of the administrative section while her sister operates a medical practice in Coventry, Connecticut.

3. Celebrities are i awe of her and her work

The likes of Beyonce have shown just how much she loves the author. Her song, “Flawless,” had an excerpt from a talk that Adichie gave at TEDxEuston in December 2012. The talk, entitled “We Should All be Feminists,” talked about how women are raised and what it means to be a feminist. “We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller,” Adichie said. “We say to girls: ‘You can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful. Otherwise, you will threaten the man…’” Hollywood superstar, Will Smith, is also a fan of Adichie’s work.

4.She loves fashion

When Adichie hit the lielight she at first tried to dress in a certain way so she could be taken seriously, but soon gave that up to reveal her personal style.

5. She dropped out of medical school to pursue writing

Adichie at first enrolled in medical school in Nigeria so as to please her father but dropped out at age 19 to attend Drexel University in Philadelphia on a scholarship. She, however, bagged a degree in communication and political science.from Eastern Connecticut State University

6. She was inspired by Chinua Achebe

Adichie got her inspiration after reading Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart.” She once said, “I realized that people who looked like me could live in books.” Using that inspiration, Adichie has been writing about the Nigerian experience throughout her career.

7. She lived in a house once owned by Chinua Achebe

The writer grew up in a house that was once used by one of Africa’s finest writers, Chinua Achebe.

8. She gives back

Adichie has been organizing Creative Writing Workshop annually since 2008 as a way of encouraging Nigerian youth.

9. “Half of a Yellow Sun,”

Her second novel Half Of A Yellow son was made into a film which featured Hollywood acts like Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton, Anika Noni Rose, and Nollywood’s Genevieve Nnaji. .

10. She does not like the tag Mrs

Despite once describing marriage as a ‘dangerous’ institution for women; Adichie is married to Dr. Ivara Esege, a doctor based in Maryland, the ed States. She, however, does not like to be called a MRS. In an interview with Naij, she said: “Addressing me as Mrs. Chimamanda (Esega), I don’t like this at all. So my name is Chimamanda Adichie, full stop”