Title: One World: A Global Anthology of Short Stories
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, ed.
Year published: 2009
Category: YA/Adult fiction (short stories)
Pages: 192 pages
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Location: (my 2021 Google Reading map): US, Puerto Rico, Nigeria, Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Cameroon, Greece, Malaysia, Bangladesh, India, Australia, UK,
Summary: This book is made up of twenty-three stories, each from a different author from across the globe. All belong to one world, united in their diversity and ethnicity. And together they have one aim: to involve and move the reader.
The range of authors takes in such literary greats as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Jhumpa Lahiri, and emerging authors such as Elaine Chiew, Petina Gappah, and Henrietta Rose-Innes.
The members of the collective are:
Elaine Chiew (Malaysia)
Molara Wood (Nigeria)
Jhumpa Lahiri (United States)
Martin A Ramos (Puerto Rico)
Lauri Kubutsile (Botswana)
Chika Unigwe (Nigeria)
Ravi Mangla (United States)
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)
Skye Brannon (United States)
Jude Dibia (Nigeria)
Shabnam Nadiya (Bangladesh)
Petina Gappah (Zimbabwe)
Ivan Gabirel Reborek (Australia)
Vanessa Gebbie (Britain)
Emmanual Dipita Kwa (Cameroon)
Henrietta Rose-Innes (South Africa)
Lucinda Nelson Dhavan (India)
Adetokunbo Abiola (Nigeria)
Wadzanai Mhute (Zimbabwe)
Konstantinos Tzikas (Greece)
Ken Kamoche (Kenya)
Sequoia Nagamatsu (United States)
Ovo Adagha (Nigeria)
From the Introduction:
The concept of One World is often a multi-colored tapestry into which sundry, if not contending patterns can be woven. for those of us who worked on this project, ‘One World’ goes beyond the everyday notion of the globe as a physical geographic entity. Rather, we understand it as a universal idea, one that transcends national boundaries to comment on the most prevailing
aspects of the human condition.
This attempt to redefine the borders of the world we live in through the short story recognizes the many conflicting issues of race, language, economy, gender and ethnicity, which separate and limit us. We readily acknowledge, however, that regardless of our differences or the disparities in our stories, we are united by our humanity.
We invite the reader on a personal journey across continents, countries, cultures and landscapes, to reflect on these beautiful, at times chaotic, renditions on the human experience. We hope the reach of this path will transcend the borders of each story, and perhaps function as an agent of change.
Review: I read this book to see if it is appropriate/a good choice for a teacher professional development series that I am running. We meet to discuss Race and Ethnicity from a Global Perspective, visiting a different region of the world each month. We're trying to find books that K-12 teachers can use with their students and thought this might be a good one.
The stories in this collection range from 2 pages to about 10 so can be read quickly. They are not connected to each other either so it means students could each read one or a whole class/group could read a number of the stories. Though the stories are fiction, each one reveals the culture of its author.
I liked all of the stories in this anthology and feel like I got a good sense of each author's style, a bit about their home country, and I met interesting characters. I think I read them all too quickly, one right after the other, since I was in a rush to decide about the book. I wish I had had more time with each story to really savor the details and impact on my thoughts.
Challenges for which this counts:
- Diversity
- Literary Escapes--Botswana, Cameroon, Greece, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, Zimbabwe
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