My friend Ronald Gottesman says...that the cause of all our trouble is the belief in an essential, pure identity: religious, ethnic, historical, ideological. — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
Sometimes we say we want an end to hate or racism or sexism. But we all participate in keeping these structures alive. If everyone decided to relinquish the past what would happen to people who feel that there hasn't been… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
I think it's an aggregation of all of the small acts that are really transformative. I think a group of small acts transform the… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
“He too, it seemed, had come to believe that he could somehow escape history. That it was possible, and even desirable, to live in… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
My mom taught me to read when I was two or three. When I was five I read and wrote well enough to do… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
You know, you can steel your heart against any kind of trouble, any kind of horror. But the simple act of kindness from a… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
Fiction is more dangerous than nonfiction because it can seduce better. I think we all know this, know that deeper truths can be approached… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
My grand uncle was a traditional priest, and he would always say to me as a kid, 'We stand in our own light,' which… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
Unlike other books or TV shows or sometimes life, my narrative worlds are stripped of implicit moral centers. There is only what you bring.… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
Nigerians are everywhere. There's an old joke, particularly about the Ibos, that when you finally land on Mars, you're going to find a Nigerian… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
“Circuses are about entertainment and juggling and animals and all that shit. Sideshows are about freaks, about people and the limits of acceptability. We… — Chris Abani Copy Share Image
