The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa — Stephen Buoro

The Los Angeles Times Book Prizes Finalist

Shortlisted for the 2024 Betty Trask Prize

Longlisted for the 2024 Aspen Words Literary Prize



"This novel shimmers." -NPR "Best Books of the Year"

"Funny, vulgar, and wrenching."-New York Magazine



Fifteen-year-old Andrew Aziza lives in Kontagora, Nigeria, where his days are spent about town with his friends, fantasizing about white girls. When he's not in church, at school, or attempting to form "Africa's first superheroes," he obsesses over mathematical theorems, ideas of Black power, and HXVX: the Curse of Africa.



Sure enough, Andy soon falls for the first blonde he sees. But multiple crises are looming, set to shake the foundations of everything he knows and loves . . .



Crackling with energy and intelligence, this tragicomic novel of contemporary African life announces an astounding new talent.



"A writer of imagination and flair . . . Andy Africa is an unforgettable character." -The Economist

"A voice unlike any other." -Observer

"I fell in love immediately." -Max Porter