Tomi Adeyemi, a Nigerian-American author, has released her critically acclaimed debut, Young-Adult Fantasy book, ‘Children of Blood and Bone.’ Tomi Ad
Tomi Adeyemi, a Nigerian-American author, has released her critically acclaimed debut, Young-Adult Fantasy book, ‘Children of Blood and Bone.’ Tomi Adeyemi, who released the novel on March 6th, landed a seven figure book-and-movie deal with Hollywood Fox studios for ‘Children of Blood and Bone,’ her first novel also described as a ‘Black Lives Matter-inspired fantasy novel,’ a year ago. Fox 2000, which purchased the film rights before the novel was released, was so impressed by the 24-year-old’s writing style that they tagged the project as being as successful as its other YA franchises, ‘Twilight’ and ‘Maze Runner’.
An elated Tomi Adeyemi took to her twitter handle @tomi_adeyemi to write: “The wait is over!!! Children of Blood and Bone finally out in the world.
“Thank you to everyone who’s been on this journey with me and supported this book. Orisa, Zelie and I have been waiting for you. #Orisaforever #nowwerise.
“Don’t really have words for this moment. I have officially held my first book,” she tweeted.
Adeyemi, a Harvard graduate, said her book was inspired both by West African mythology and the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement. She also described the feeling of having a successful debut book as surreal, on the ‘Good Morning America’ show recently, where she discussed the book and its connection with her Nigerian roots.
‘Children of Blood and Bone’ tells the story of a dark-skinned girl who takes on an empire. Zélie, the main protagonist in this story, was only a six-year-old Orïsha when she watched the king’s guard hang her mother on a tree outside her home. Never forgetting it, she contained the blessing of god’s magic within her spirit. Over time, their population was cut down as magic became a thing to loathe and having dark skin became a thing to hate. 10 years later, Zélie Adebola has a chance to bring magic back into the world.
Adeyemi, who has been referred to as the next J.K. Rowling (writer of the successful Harry Potter series), created an epic tale of an oppressive world that a lot of Black people can relate with. She hinged her characters, their conversations and habitats on the rich culture and traditions of her indigenous Yoruba culture.
Adeyemi who is based in San Diego, California, is also a creative writing coach. Tomi After graduating from Harvard University with an honors degree in English literature, she received a fellowship that allowed her to study West African mythology and culture in Salvador, Brazil. When she’s not working on her novels or watching ‘Scandal’, she can be found blogging and teaching creative writing to her 3,500 subscribers at tomiadeyemi.com. Her website has been named one of the 101 best websites for writers by Writer’s Digest.
NAN
