Reese Witherspoon has selected Chibundu Onuzo’s Sankofa as the latest pick for her book club.
The actor–turned–book maven made the announcement on Instagram, praising the book as “a beautiful exploration of the often complex parameters of freedom, prejudice and individual sense of self.”
Sankofa, Onuzo’s third novel, which was published Tuesday by Catapult, follows a biracial woman in London who seeks to reconnect with her African father after the death of her mother. A critic for Kirkus called the novel “an engagingly written journey of self-discovery.”
In an interview with Megan Labrise on Kirkus’ Fully Booked podcast, Onuzo explained the meaning of the novel’s title.
“The sankofa bird is a mythical bird, it’s found in the Akan culture, and it means, literally, something like ‘Go back and get it,’” she said. “It flies forward with its head facing backwards.…It’s this idea that you must keep moving forward but without forgetting what’s in the past.”
Onuzo reacted to her book’s selection on Instagram, writing, “I grew up watching @reesewitherspoon. From #LegallyBlonde to #SweetHomeAlabama to more recently, @themorningshow. How utterly amazing that she chose #Sankofa as the @reesesbookclub pick for October. It’s the Lord’s doing and it’s marvellous in our eyes. #Grateful.”
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
