Helen Oyeyemi

The Icarus Girl Helen Oyeyemi

Jacket Description/Flap: ""The Icarus Girl is an astonishing achievement." --"Sunday Telegraph (London) Jessamy "Jess" Harrison is eight years old. Sensitive, whimsical, possessed of an extraordinary and powerful imagination, she spends hours writing haiku, reading Shakespeare, or simply hiding in the dark warmth of the airing cupboard. As the child of an English father and a Nigerian mother, Jess just can't shake off the feeling of being alone wherever she goes, and the other kids in her class are wary of her tendency to succumb to terrified fits of screaming. Believing that a change from her English environment might be the perfect antidote to Jess's alarming mood swings, her parents whisk her off to Nigeria for the first time where she meets her mother's family--including her formidable grandfather. Jess's adjustment to Nigeria is only beginning when she encounters Titiola, or TillyTilly, a ragged little girl her own age. To Jess, it seems that, at last, she has found someone who will understand her. But gradually, TillyTilly's visits become more disturbing, making Jess start to realize that she doesn't know who TillyTilly is at all. Lyrical, haunting, and compelling, "The Icarus Girl draws on Nigerian mythology to present a strikingly original variation on a classic literary theme: the existence of "doubles," both real and spiritual, who play havoc with our perceptions and our lives. A story of twins and ghosts, of a little girl growing up between cultures and colors, this book heralds the arrival of a remarkable new talent. Review Quotes: "Oyeyemi brilliantly conjures up the raw emotions and playground banter of childhood. . . . A masterly first novel."-"The New York Times Book Review""Oyeyemi writes about childhood as if she were not inventing but truly remembering it, not through the distancing lens of time, but as scary and magical as it really was." -"San Francisco Chronicle""Remarkable. . . . As original as it is unsettling, "The Icarus Girl" runs straight at the heart of what it means to belong.- "O, The Oprah Magazine""["The Icarus Girl"] provides evidence of a vivid imagination capable of moving freely between cultures and continents. . . . Haunting and suspense-filled."-"The Washington Post Book World"Biographical Note: Helen Oyeyemi was born in Nigeria in 1984 and has lived in London from the age of four. She completed "The Icarus Girl" just before her nineteenth birthday while studying for her A-level exams. She is a member of the class of 2006 at Cambridge University, where she studied social and political sciences. "The Icarus Girl" is her first novel, and she is at work on her second. Marc Notes: Originally published in hardcover in Great Britain by Bloomsbury Publishing, London, in 2005, and subsequently published in hardcover in the United States by Nan A. Talese ... 2005--T.p. verso. Publisher Marketing: Jessamy "Jess" Harrison, age eight, is the child of an English father and a Nigerian mother. Possessed of an extraordinary imagination, she has a hard time fitting in at school. It is only when she visits Nigeria for the first time that she makes a friend who understands her: a ragged little girl named TillyTilly. But soon TillyTilly's visits become more disturbing, until Jess realizes she doesn't actually know who her friend is at all. Drawing on Nigerian mythology, Helen Oyeyemi presents a striking variation on the classic literary theme of doubles -- both real and spiritual -- in this lyrical and bold debut. Review Citations:

New York Times 04/30/2006 pg. 24 (EAN 9781400078752, Paperback)

Kliatt 09/01/2006 pg. 26 (EAN 9781400078752, Paperback)

Publishers Weekly 04/04/2005 pg. 40 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Library Journal 05/01/2005 pg. 75 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Ingram Advance 06/01/2005 pg. 75 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Booklist 05/01/2005 pg. 1571 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Poder Hispanic 06/15/2005 pg. 106 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Black Issues Book Review 07/01/2005 pg. 26 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Newsweek 07/04/2005 pg. 53 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Ebony 08/01/2005 pg. 28 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

New York Times 07/17/2005 pg. 17 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

School Library Journal 10/01/2005 pg. 200 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Black Issues Book Review 11/01/2005 pg. 36 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Library Journal Prepub Alert 02/01/2005 pg. 52 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Library Journal 02/01/2005 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Kirkus Reviews 03/15/2005 pg. 310 (EAN 9780385513838, Hardcover)

Contributor Bio:  Oyeyemi, Helen Helen Oyeyemi was born in Nigeria in 1984 and moved to London when she was four. She wrote "The Icarus Girl "while she was still at school, studying for her A levels, and is now a student of Social and Political Sciences at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.