Chibundu Onuzo was born in 1991 in Nigeria, the youngest of four children of parents who are doctors, and grew up in Lagos. She moved to England when she was 14 to study at an all-girls’ school in Winchester, Hampshire, for her GCSEs, and at the age of 17 began writing her first novel, which was signed two years later by Faber and Faber and was published when she was 21. She was the youngest female writer ever taken on by the publisher. Reviewing her second book, Welcome to Lagos , Helon Habila wrote in The Guardian: “Onuzo’s portrayal of human character is often too optimistic, her view of politics and society too charitable; but her ability to bring her characters to life, including the city of Lagos, perhaps the best-painted character of all, is impressive.”
Onuzo received a first-class bachelor’s degree in history from King’s College London , and went on to earn a master’s degree in public policy from University College London. As of 2017, she is studying for a PhD at King’s College London.
She is a contributor to the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby.
Her novel Sankofa was published in the UK by Virago in June 2021, and was reviewed by The Guardian as "[a]n accomplished novel that explores difference and belonging with a cool intensity”. Sankofa was published by Catapult in the US and by Narrative Landscape in Nigeria.
