Best Selling Books by Esi Edugyan

"Berlin, 1939. The Hot-Time Swingers, a popular German American jazz band, have been forbidden to play live because the Nazis have banned their ''degenerate music.'' After escaping to Paris, where they meet Louis Armstrong, the band''s brilliant young trumpet-player, Hieronymus Falk, is arrested in a cafâe by the Gestapo. It is June 1940. He is never heard from again. He is twenty years old, a German citizen. And he is black. Berlin, 1992. Falk, now a jazz legend, is the subject of a celebratory documentary. Two of the original Hot-Time Swingers American band members, Sid Griffiths and Chip Jones, are invited to attend the film''s premier in Berlin. As they return to the landscape of their past friendships, rivalries, loves and betrayals, Sid, the only witness to Falk''s disappearance who has always refused to speak about what happened, is forced to break his silence. Sid recreates the lost world of Berlin''s pre-war smoky bars, and the salons of Paris, telling his vibrant and suspenseful story in German American slang. Half-Blood Blues is a novel about music and race, love and loyalty, and marks the arrival of an extraordinarily ''gifted storyteller'' (The Toronto Star)"--Provided by publisher.

MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW''S TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • “A gripping historical narrative exploring both the bounds of slavery and what it means to be truly free.” —Vanity Fair Eleven-year-old George Washington Black—or Wash—a field slave on a Barbados sugar plantation, is initially terrified when he is chosen as the manservant of his master’s brother. To his surprise, however, the eccentric Christopher Wilde turns out to be a naturalist, explorer, inventor, and abolitionist. Soon Wash is initiated into a world where a flying machine can carry a man across the sky, where even a boy born in chains may embrace a life of dignity and meaning, and where two people, separated by an impossible divide, can begin to see each other as human. But when a man is killed and a bounty is placed on Wash’s head, they must abandon everything and flee together. Over the course of their travels, what brings Wash and Christopher together will tear them apart, propelling Wash ever farther across the globe in search of his true self. Spanning the Caribbean to the frozen Far North, London to Morocco, Washington Black is a story of self-invention and betrayal, of love and redemption, and of a world destroyed and made whole again.

The brilliant, bestselling, Giller Prize-winning novel Esi Edugyan''s Half-Blood Blues took the literary world by storm when it was first published, captivating readers and reviewers with its audacity, power, and sheer brilliance. The novel won or was nominated for every literary prize in Canada--and many international ones, too, including the prestigious Man Booker Prize. It was hailed as one of the best books of the year by Oprah, The Globe and Mail, Amazon, The San Francisco Chronicle and The Vancouver Sun, and it was named a New York Times Editor''s Choice. From the smoky bars of pre-war Berlin to the salons of Paris, the narrator of Half-Blood Blues, musician Sid Griffiths, leads the reader through a fascinating, little-known world and into the heart of his own guilty conscience. The bestselling, award-winning Half-Blood Blues is an entrancing, electric story about jazz, race, love and loyalty, and the sacrifices we ask of ourselves--and demand of others--in the name of art.

Home, for me, was not a birthright, but an invention. It seems to me when we speak of home we are speaking of several things, often at once, muddled together into an uneasy stew. We say home and mean origins, we say home and mean belonging. These are two different things: where we come from, and where we are. Writing about belonging is not a simple task. Esi Edugyan chooses to intertwine fact and fiction, objective and subjective in an effort to find out if one can belong to more than one place, if home is just a place or if it can be an idea, a person, a memory, or a dream. How "home" changes, how it changes us, and how every farewell carries the promise of a return. Readers of Canadian literature, armchair travellers, and all citizens of the global village will enjoy her explorations and reflections, as we follow her from Ghana to Germany, from Toronto to Budapest, from Paris to New York.

An insightful exploration and moving meditation on identity, art, and belonging from one of the most celebrated writers of the last decade. What happens when we begin to consider stories at the margins, when we grant them centrality? How does that complicate our certainties about who we are, as individuals, as nations, as human beings? Through the lens of visual art, literature, film, and the author’s lived experience, Out of the Sun examines Black histories in art, offering new perspectives to challenge us. In this groundbreaking, reflective, and erudite book, two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize winner and internationally bestselling author Esi Edugyan illuminates myriad varieties of Black experience in global culture and history. Edugyan combines storytelling with analyses of contemporary events and her own personal story in this dazzling first major work of non-fiction.

Haunting and atmospheric, this debut novel portrays the heartbreak, hardship and moments of surprising grace in the life of a man struggling to realize his destiny. A young man of astonishing promise when he emigrated from Ghana in 1955, Samuel Tyne was determined to accomplish great things. Fifteen long years later, he’s an insignificant government employee who hates his job when he unexpectedly inherits his uncle’s crumbling mansion in Aster, Alberta. Despite his wife’s resistance and the sullen complaints of his thirteen-year-old twin daughters, Samuel quits his job and moves his family to the town. For here, he believes, is that fabled second chance, and he is determined not to fail again. At first, Aster seems perfect — to Samuel, the formerly all-black town represents the return to a communal, idyllic way of life. But he soon discovers the town’s problems: a history of in-fighting, a strict town council and a series of mysterious fires that put all the townsfolk on edge. When his daughters cease speaking and refuse to explain their increasingly strange behaviour, Samuel turns more and more to the refuge of his electronics shop. As his ambitions intensify, the life he has struggled so hard to improve begins to disintegrate around him, and a dark current of menace in the town is turned upon the Tyne family.

Two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize winner Esi Edugyan debuts her picture book, lovingly illustrated by Amélie Dubois, a whimsical story about friendship, curiosity and the magic of a vibrant community Akosua was always told she was too nosy. Her parents loved her very much, but she always seemed to find trouble. “Trouble isn’t what I find!” said Akosua. “I’m an Exquirologist. What I find is lost things.” This big-hearted picture book debut from one of Canada’s brightest literary stars follows Akosua, a budding Exquirologist, as she finds both a new friend and a remarkable world hidden right in her very own community. Acclaimed artist Amélie Dubois adds a layer of magic to Akosua’s charming adventure with her delicate, compelling illustrations. Each turn of the page pulls readers deeper into Akosua’s journey, daring them to become Exquirologists too, and encouraging them to seek out magic in the mundane!

Un disque de 3 minutes 33 secondes, c’est tout ce qu’il reste de ce temps-là. De ce Paris occupé où trois jazzmen planqués pour échapper aux nazis tentaient malgré tout d’enregistrer un morceau. Sid, Chip, et Hiero, deux Noirs de Baltimore et un métis allemand, unis le temps d’un enregistrement frondeur, au nez et à la barbe de l’ennemi. Avant, c’est à Berlin qu’ils jouaient, quand l’Amérique marquait le tempo des folles nuits européennes. Avant que Goebbels n’interdise cette « musique nègre » et qu’eux trouvent refuge en France et rencontrent le grand Armstrong. Mais, parfois, il ne faut guère plus de trois minutes pour qu’un destin bascule. Un regard enjôleur, une ligne de basse qui dérape, des papiers qui n’arrivent pas... Alors restent les souvenirs, ces moments hors du temps qui font le sel de la vie. Dans ce roman émouvant et drôle, où fiction et réalité se confondent, Esi Edugyan brosse le portrait d’une époque, d’un milieu, d’une amitié, retrouvant les accents savoureux et le langage des musiciens noirs américains.

«Una historia fascinante sobre la verdad y la traición. Una novela brillante y ágil.» The Times «Una potente mezcla de emociones... Escritura magnífica, sutil caracterización de personajes y un retrato muy convincente del lugar y la época en este atractivo trabajo que recuerda al primer V. S. Naipaul.» The Guardian París, 1940. Los nazis, que acaban de invadir la ciudad, detienen en un café a un extraordinario trompetista de jazz. Se llama Hiero, tiene veinte años y es ciudadano alemán y de raza negra. Nunca más se supo de él. Cincuenta años después, Sid Griffiths, compañero de su grupo de jazz, todavía se niega a hablar de lo que sucedió aquella noche. Solo cuando, desde el pasado, llegue una misteriosa carta, Sid será capaz de empezar a contarnos esta intensa y emocionante historia que nos llevará desde los bares del Berlín de preguerra a los salones de París y, pasando por la infancia del narrador en Baltimore, al Berlín de la caída del Muro y a la Polonia de nuestros días. Con Un blues mestizo Esi Edugyan ha sido una de las grandes revelaciones del prestigioso Man Booker Prize del año 2011, en el que quedó entre las cinco finalistas. Un relato de aventuras que mantiene al lector en vilo y una novela sobre la envidia, el peso de la culpa y la pasión por la música.

«Una storia emozionante, fatta di verità e tradimenti». Times «Questo suono è una leggenda brilla per introspezione e accuratezza della ricostruzione storica... riesce a rievocare, in modo straordinario, lo spirito del tempo: lo scintillio del jazz, la provocazione che incarnano i suoi protagonisti, lo slang dell’epoca». Independent

Berlin 1939. Barndomsvännerna Sid och Chip har tagit sig från Baltimores bakgator till Berlins rökiga barer för att lira jazz och leva gott. Men sedan nazisterna kom till makten är deras musik bannlyst. Deras tillvaro kompliceras ytterligare av att bandets briljante unge trumpetare Hiero är tysk och svart. Bandet flyr till Paris för att spela in en skiva, men en kväll grips Hiero på ett kafé av Gestapo och ingen hör av honom igen. Halvblodsblues är en berättelse om mänsklig styrka och svaghet, om vänskap och musikens frigörande kraft. Esi Edugyan är 34 år, från Kanada med ursprung i Ghana. Halvblodsblues var nominerad till såväl Bookerpriset 2011 som Orangepriset 2012.

Van Europese schilderkunst tot Black Panther: een vlijmscherpe analyse van representatie van Zwarte mensen in kunst. Als Esi Edugyan verschillende musea in Europa bezoekt, loopt ze vol bewondering door verschillende zalen. Alleen de portretkunst uit de achttiende en negentiende eeuw geeft haar een ongemakkelijk gevoel. Na verloop van tijd begrijpt ze waarom: een Zwart persoon wordt altijd in de marge afgebeeld. Als tot slaaf gemaakte, bediende of dienstmeisje, maar zelden als gewoon mens. Geschiedenis is een construct, waarbij er gekozen is verhalen van bepaalde mensen centraal te stellen. Maar waarom zetten we sommige verhalen buitenspel en mythologiseren we andere? Welke sociale en politieke opvattingen bepalen onze herinneringen? Hoe zijn Zwarte verhalen en Zwarte geschiedenis in de kunst verbeeld? Edugyan onderzoekt schilderkunst, film, literatuur en haar eigen ervaringen. Wat gebeurt er als je de verhalen in de marge in het licht zet?

See below for English description. Esi Edugyan, deux fois gagnante du prix Scotiabank Giller, présente son premier album, soigneusement illustré par Amélie Dubois. Il s''agit d''une histoire fantaisiste sur l''amitié, la curiosité et la magie d''une communauté dynamique. On dit toujours à Akosua qu''elle est trop fouineuse. Ses parents l''aiment beaucoup, mais elle est toujours dans le pétrin. -- Je suis une trouvailliste, affirme Akosua. Je peux tout trouver! Esi Edugyan est l''une des plus brillantes étoiles littéraires du Canada. Elle raconte l''histoire d''Akosua alors qu''elle découvre à la fois un nouvel ami et un monde remarquable caché au sein même de sa communauté. L''artiste acclamée Amélie Dubois ajoute une touche de magie à la charmante aventure d''Akosua grâce à ses illustrations délicates et fascinantes. Chaque page tournée entraîne les lecteur-rices plus profondément dans le périple d''Akosua, les mettant au défi de devenir eux/elles aussi des trouvaillistes, et les encourageant à rechercher la magie dans la banalité du quotidien! Two-time Scotiabank Giller Prize winner Esi Edugyan debuts her picture book, lovingly illustrated by Amélie Dubois -- a whimsical story about friendship, curiosity, and the magic of a vibrant community. Akosua was always told she was too nosy. Her parents loved her very much, but she always seemed to find trouble. "Trouble isn''t what I find!" said Akosua. "I''m an Exquirologist. What I find is lost things." This big-hearted picture book debut from one of Canada''s brightest literary stars follows Akosua as she finds both a new friend and a remarkable world hidden right in her very own community. Acclaimed artist Amélie Dubois adds a layer of magic to Akosua''s charming adventure with her delicate, compelling illustrations. Each turn of the page pulls readers deeper into Akosua''s journey, daring them to become Exquirologists too, and encouraging them to seek out magic in the mundane! Original Title: Garden of Lost Socks

Een uit Ghana afkomstige man die naar Canada geëmigreerd is en daar is getrouwd met een ook uit Ghana afkomstige vrouw, heeft een ambtenarenbaan in Calgary maar voelt zich daar niet gelukkig.

Wanneer aan het begin van de Tweede Wereldoorlog een band naar Parijs reist om er een jazzalbum op te nemen, wordt de zwarte hoornist met de Duitse nationaliteit al gauw gearresteerd.