20 Years of Beasts of No Nation 📚✨
I’m thrilled to announce a special John Murray Classics edition of my first novel, Beasts of No Nation, with a brilliant new introduction by the amazing @_katiekitamura . It joins an iconic lineup alongside The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano, Jane Austen’s Emma, and more. (Link to order in bio.)
When @johnmurrays first published Beasts of No Nation 20 years ago, I had no idea what it would become — only that this story was necessary, and that I’d been given the daunting privilege of telling it.
Since then, the novel has:
🏆 Won multiple awards
🌍 Been translated into numerous languages
🎬 Become an award-winning film starring @idriselba
🎭 Been adapted for the stage
For me, Beasts has always been about human resilience — and about the need to tell stories that reflect the multiplicities of human experience, especially in times of struggle and change.
The John Murray Classics series features books that have done just that for over three centuries. I’m honored for Beasts of No Nation to join their ranks.
📖 Explore the full collection: https://linktr.ee/JMClassics2025
#BeastsOfNoNation #JohnMurrayClassics #Bookstagram #Literature #IdrisElba #AfricanLiterature #BookAnniversary
Happy 70th Birthday Mommy! I don’t know why we make a big deal of the round numbers because every year has been a year in which you have been the greatest example of how to be — to be human; to be honorable; to show love to those close to you and the many who you may only meet once but treat as if they are family; to believe in the potential of our country and the potential of every person in this whole world. Thank you for being a light for our family and to many in a world. Thank you for being unapologetically you! Happy 70th birthday!
Thank you to @zainashercnn and @cnn@cnnafrica for highlighting how The Africa Center hopes to be a key voice in the future of Africa. This one-on-one with our CEO @uiweala shares how our three pillars: business, policy and culture play a pivotal role in shaping what comes next for the Continent.
Watch the full feature at the link in our bio!
Hey folks please check out this podcast on narrative as a tool for systems change I did with Noa Gafni over at the Rutgers Institue for social innovation! Link in bio
Really excited that @theafricacenter was featured in @nytimes . The story (link in bio) talks about the realness of what it takes to build an institution and what it means to transform the way that the world considers Africa its country and peoples. Thank you to @dionnesearcey for taking the time to understand our story and to @elias.williams for a beautiful photo. Also thank you to the wonderful people who work at the center, our board and all the folks who have worked with us to represent African perspectives.
Just got to Los Angeles and I’m really excited to receive this @icon.mann award with luminaries @gpbmadeit and @reggiehudlin . Very grateful that the work I get to do at @theafricacenter is building space for African and diaspora stories and storytellers!
“Aid is not charity!” I feel like Africans have been saying this for a long time… only we’ve been saying consider it a meager installment repayment plan for that zero interest loan y’all took (and continue to take) 400 years ago. From now on, I will stay any article I write on aid with “as president Zelensky said, “aid is not charity, it’s investment”.
SBF Take 2: Why do I get the feeling that @sorkinsays and @nytimes weren’t exactly considering content of SBFs character more than color of his skin when they invited this criminal. I have a hard time seeing an Ifeanyi, Jamal or Dante getting a #nytimes platform to talk about looting billions from customer accounts to buy real estate in the Bahamas. But maybe this math doesn’t add up for me cause I’m not a #whiteboygenius 🤷🏿♂️
Don’t miss #MIGlobal, where I’ll be on a panel discussing how we can rebuild
healthier, meaningful, and prosperous lives for all. Get more information at
globalconference.org!
Today the Energy for Growth Hub and @theafricacenter launched a new report, Reframing Climate Justice for Development, that I am excited to have co-authored. Nine energy and development experts from across Africa and the US have collaborated to argue why we urgently need an expanded definition of climate justice and how that definition should drive a new approach to investments in energy-poor countries.
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Check out this important read as we come off of @unitednations climate week and prepare for COP26 in Glasgow via the link in my bio.
