Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "Americanah has emerged the winner of a contest launched by the New York City reading program "One Book, One New York".
Throughout February, New Yorkers cast their ballots for the book they wanted millions of residents to read simultaneously.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Americanah has emerged the winner of a contest launched by the New York City reading program "One Book, One New York".
Throughout February, New Yorkers cast their ballots for the book they wanted millions of residents to read simultaneously.
The contest nominated five award-winning books and invited New Yorkers to pick their favorite online or at digital kiosks on subway platforms.
Yesterday, the organizers of the reading program announced that Americanah got the highest of the fifty thousand votes.
Since the launch of the book, Americanah and other books have been on display in subways and inside trains.
The manager of Barnes & Noble Booksellers, John Deng, told Saharareporters that the store sells an average of 100 copies of Americanah every month.
“We have sold 400 copies in four months, despite that the book is old in the market.”
He said it was a good thing that the mayor shows interest in promoting important books such as Americanah.
Americanah, which won a National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction, was published in 2013. It was also named one of The New York Times' "Ten Best Books of the Year."
Jessica Martinez, a customer at Barnes &Noble was so excited she was getting her copy when Saharareporters spoke to her.
“I just finished reading We should all be Feminists and I agree totally with her, we all should be feminists. I can’t wait to read Americanah ,” she told Saharareporters.
Americanah captures the lived experience of Nigerians living in Nigeria and America through the personal story of two young lovers separated by distance, Ifemelu and Obinze.
The Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) has announced it would host film screenings and panel discussions to drum up excitement about the book and get New Yorkers talking about it.
