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In this immaculate study of father-son relationships and the black masculinity, Okechukwu introduces to two Black, gay British-Nigerian men. Achike and Ekene find themselves wading through the existential phenomena of being alive, Black and gay while navigating life, ambitions and family.

The story begins with these two but then traces back to the fathers of these men, and their forefathers, in doing so examines a lineage of brokenness, unavailability and abuse.

Who is man and how much of what he is, is a result of what has become and was undone before him? 

Okechukwu uses recurrence to emphasise the cyclical nature of life in this novel while exploring Igbo mythology and concepts of life, death and rebirth.

The characters are struck by a tragedy almost a halfway into the book which forces the reader and the characters to participate in the exposition of love and life lost and intimacy unfulfilled. These complexities are compounded by grief and the cruelty of loss as we watch these characters attempt to make sense of iniquity of tragedy.

We sat with Okechukwu to discuss his hauntingly beautiful trans-generational novel on fathers, sons, love and grief.

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In this enthralling debut collection of short stories by Arinze Ifeakandu God’s Children Are Little Broken Things is a collection of 9 short stories set in Nigeria that examine queer identity, relationships, family and societal isolation.

Arinze writes stories with characters whose lives are layered, complicated by youth, love and grief. He asks of them and by extension, the reader; difficult questions around the relationship between truth and honesty, disappointment and resilience.

Many of these stories could be individual novels and that in itself is a testament to Arinze’s skill in one of the most challenging literary genres.

We sat down with Arinze Ifeakandu to discuss his Dylan Thomas prize winning debut 
God’s Children Are Little Broken Things. It also won the inaugural Republic of Consciousness Prize. It has also been shortlisted for other literary awards.

In this powerful conversation we explored love lost and found, queer belonging and displacement, the onsweship of grief , and what it means to love a place that may not love you back.

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In this intriguing debut by  Chịkọdịlị Emelụmadụ, we are introduced to two young girls Ozoemena and Treasure, whose coming of age takes place in a boarding school in Nigeria. Their meeting is set against the backdrop of familial loss and tragedy. 

We watch them try to navigate the realities of coming of age and into themselves in a society that doesn’t always give them space to do that.


Treasure has experienced the violence of patriarchy and the institutions which support it and has to make difficult decisions when approached by a dark spirit.

 Ozoemena has to contend with a different spiritual identity when her uncle dies. 


In this novel, filled with Igbo mythology and fascinating metaphysical occurrences, African oral histories are brought to the forefront.

We sat with Chịkọdịlị Emelụmadụ as we explored what it means to write a genre bending coming of age novel as a debut.

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This book begins with a curse put on the house of Zulu and her family, the Mhlongos, by Nandi Mhlongo, mother of Shaka ka Senzangakhona for the disrespect she endured from them.Weaving through the lives of three women living in different historical ages who in their own ways attempt to get restitution for Nandi.

Through the eyes of three female protagonists, each who experiences a different loss and heartbreak, Dr Mazibuko-Msimang explores African spirituality, disappointment and familial relationships.

This novel is an ode to the power of historical fiction, well-researched with a focus on some of the most important historical periods in South Africa. From the Frontier wars, Apartheid and Fees Must Fall, each of the protagonists reveal a powerful, feminist centred gaze. 

Dr Mazibuko-Msimang sat down with us to discuss her debut novel. In this eye opening conversation, we discussed the themes of generational trauma, cellular memory, restorative justice  and how those with no institutional power get justice.

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In this beautiful memoir, Safiya Sinclair writes about her childhood and adolescence in Jamaica with parents in the Rastafari faith. In an act of personal excavation, she brings forth the hidden histories of a people pushed to the margins by colonisation, oppression, and religious intolerance, all exacerbated by patriarchy. 

Raised in difficult socio-economic conditions by a father who increasingly becomes more militant in his practice of Rastafari, Safiya and her siblings find refuge in her mother’s creativity and love for literature.

We are drawn to the discovery of Safiya as a scholar and poet while navigating her intimate relationship with her family, the first site of turmoil and conflict between the author and the people she loves. Truthful but graceful, we embark on the journey to humanise her parents in the face of the difficult upbringing that she has.

The beauty of Safiya’s writing is the tenderness with which she handles the contradictions of an upbringing that cuts its children’s joys and ambitions small but also finds love and joy in many of these moments.

All of this take place with the ever foreboding threat of Babylon, encroaching in their personal lives and their relationship with the outside world. We are struck by the ways in which even the most vehement opposers of Babylon, accede to its rules in the world of work and life – a metaphor for the ways in which people survive.

National Book Critics Circle Award Winner
A New York Times Notable Book
A Read with Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick!
A Best Book of 2023 by the New York Times, Time, The Washington Post, Vulture, Shelf Awareness, Goodreads, Esquire, The Atlantic, NPR, and Barack Obama
The 2024 OCM BOCAS PRIZE non-fiction winner
Shortlisted for the non-fiction prize for the women's prize.  

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In My Life as a Chameleon, Diana Anyakwo explores the themes of identity, family and memory with a tender hand. Centred around the experiences of Lily, a teenager of mixed race background growing up in Nigeria and England. 

Lily’s experience is further complicated by her birth order as the youngest of four children with a significant age difference between her and the others. Interestingly, the novel is written in a diary like format flitting between different time periods with no strict adherence to chronology.

We watch Lily experience bereavement and the subsequent pain of grief as young child whose experience is often dismissed. Prior to this loss, Lily experiences the confusion of a loved one’s mental illness and her family’s inability to confront or adequately acknowledge the fissures and chasms that this causes.


We sat down in this delightful conversation with Diana to discuss what it means to write characters who navigate complex social contexts and identities while grieving a past unknown and an uncertain future.

My Life as a Chameleon has been longlisted for the Jhalak Children's and Young Adult Prize 2024 and shortlisted for the KMPG Ireland Children's Books Ireland Awards 

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"1. Unwelcome Reunion Unwelcome Reunion
When I was twenty-eight, my stepmother Anabel came to New York on vacation. She was living, at the time, in Pakistan, where she worked for a UN agency. At a restaurant a few blocks from my Chinatown apartment, we ate noodle soup and drank red wine. That night, Anabel told me my father did not die of cancer as I believed. He died, she claimed, of AIDS."

Aftershocks are smaller earthquakes that occur in the same general area during the days to years following a larger event or "mainshock."

In her memoir of the same title, Nadia Ouwusu explores what it means to be a nomad, a childhood characterised by loss and distance. We travel with Nadia in a life characterised by contrasts, having no mother and two mothers, having strong roots and none at the same time.

Thematically inspired by the activity an earthquake, Owusu weaves between different chronological events culminating in a week long reckoning with self and history at age 28.

In a powerfully tender conversation, Owusu sat with us  to discuss her memoir. A reflection on belonging, grief and reckoning.

Filled with honesty, grace and the joy of recollection, this was one of our favourite conversations this year.

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Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

follow us on social media @cheekynatives

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

follow us on social media @cheekynatives

Send us Fan Mail

“In Violet’s bedroom, most of the furniture had been moved, except for the bed whose mattress lay on the floor and carried the weight of an unconscious Violet. The wardrobe had been moved to the corner of the room and the table that had been near the window moved to the sitting room. There was a small mound where the table had occupied space, a small grave where Violet’s baby would be laid to rest. Uncle Sontaga had dug the grave with the help of Andzani and Neo. He had used his leg to determine its depth, and when it got to his knee, he’d resolved it was deep enough.” A Soft Landing is a novel that explores the implications of a past not decisively dealt with. Wisani’s characters live lives that are mired in the questions and complexities that characterise Black life. A Soft Landing is more than a coming-of-age tale; it is a poignant study of grief in its myriad of guises. Every one of the central characters in this novel has a precarious relationship to loss. This is an examination on the weight of grief, past and present in all its manifestations. In this episode, we chat to Wisani Mushwana about his debut. We traverse topics such as homosexuality being unAfrican, weaponising shame, the cost of a human life, mental health, the implications of not dealing with trauma. We also delve into tender moments in the book, which include love, healing and hope.

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