Tope Folarin, "A Particular Kind of Black Man"

Tope Folarin discusses his book, "A Particular Kind of Black Man", at Politics and Prose.

An award-winning D.C.-based Nigerian-American writer, Folarin has been a Rhodes Scholar and was recently named to the Africa 39 list of the most promising African writers under 39. His first novel is the powerful coming-of age-story of Tunde Akinola, son of Nigerian-born parents struggling to make a new life in a small town in Utah. When the family eventually breaks under the strain, Tunde’s life becomes the search for a place where he can feel at home. Following his protagonist from his remarried father’s household to a Texas middle school and on to a historically black college, Folarin explores questions of identity and exile, manhood and meaning itself. Folarin will be in conversation with Helene Cooper, author of Madame President.

Tope Folarin is a Nigerian-American writer based in Washington, D.C. He won the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2013 and was shortlisted once again in 2016. He was also recently named to the Africa39 list of the most promising African writers under 40. He was educated at Morehouse College and the University of Oxford, where he earned two Masters degrees as a Rhodes Scholar. He is the author of A Particular Kind of Black Man.

Founded by Carla Cohen and Barbara Meade in 1984, Politics and Prose Bookstore is Washington, D.C.'s premier independent bookstore and cultural hub, a gathering place for people interested in reading and discussing books. Politics and Prose offers superior service, unusual book choices, and a haven for book lovers in the store and online. Visit them on the web at

Produced by Tom Warren