Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Born	London, England
Occupation	Novelist short-story writer columnist
Nationality	British
Alma mater	University of Aberdeen (MA)
Period	2018–present
Genre	Mystery thriller young adult fiction science fiction
Notable works	Ace of Spades
Website
www.faridahabikeiyimide.com

Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé is a British novelist, short-story writer and columnist. Her debut novel, the young adult thriller Ace of Spades (2021), received the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Youth/Teens in 2022, and reached the top ten on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Additionally, Àbíké-Íyímídé has contributed writings to several publications, including The Bookseller, gal-dem, NME and Reader's Digest.

Early life and education

Àbíké-Íyímídé was born and raised in Croydon in South London.^[1][2][3][4] She lived in Aberdeen, Scotland while studying English, Chinese and anthropology at the University of Aberdeen.^[2][5] She currently lives in London.^[4]

Career

Àbíké-Íyímídé's debut novel, Ace of Spades,^[6] is a young adult thriller with themes of "homophobia in the black community, institutional racism and the diversity of thought among black people".^[2] In 2018 she gained an agent and a UK book deal for Ace of Spades with Usborne Publishing.^[2][7] In 2020 she gained a US book deal with Macmillan Publishers for Ace of Spades along with a second novel, for a seven-figure sum.^{[8][9][10][11]}

Personal life

Àbíké-Íyímídé is openly queer.^[12]

Publications

• Ace of Spades. New York: Feiwel & Friends, 2021. ISBN 978-1250800817. London: Usborne, 2021. ISBN 978-1474967532.
• Where Sleeping Girls Lie. New York: Feiwel & Friends, 2024. ISBN 9781250800855.
• & Jaigirdar A. Four Eids and a Funeral. New York: Feiwel & Friends, 2024. ISBN 9781250890146.

References

1. DeLeavey, Markie (27 June 2019). "Breaking New Ground: Celebrating British Writers and Illustrators of Colour". CILIPS. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
2. Flood, Alison (8 September 2020). "Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé: the 21-year-old British student with a million-dollar book deal". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
3. Fawehinmi, Yolanthe (18 June 2021). "How a 22-year-old British-Nigerian student landed a million-dollar book deal". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
4. Prescod, Danielle (21 June 2021). "'Ace of Spades' Is This Summer's Must-Read YA Novel". Marie Claire. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
5. "Young British-Nigerian author, Faridah Abike-Iyimide lands 7-figure book deal on debut novel". Alternative Africa. 6 September 2020. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
6. Williams, Janice (3 September 2020). "Everything to know about "Ace of Spades"—the book that earned a 21-year-old 7 figures". Newsweek. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
7. Eyre, Charlotte (1 November 2018). "Àbíké-Íyímídé exposes racism in 'explosive' debut novel". The Bookseller. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
8. "21-year-old young adult author gets 7-figure book deal". USA TODAY. Associated Press. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
9. "21-year-old young adult author Faridah Abike-Iyimide gets 7-figure book deal". The New Indian Express. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
10. "21-year-old Black author signs seven-figure books deal". New York Daily News. 8 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
11. "21-year-old young adult author gets 7-figure book deal". ABC News. Associated Press. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
12. Raza-Sheikh, Zoya (2 July 2021). "Meet breakout British author Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé". Gay Times. Retrieved 10 September 2024.

External links

• Official website