Deze auteur creëert verhalen voor zowel kinderen als volwassenen, waarbij ze regelmatig thema's als identiteit en de Afrikaanse ervaring verkent. Haar stijl wordt gekenmerkt door levendige taal en een scherp oog voor menselijke relaties. Via haar verhalen deelt ze de uiteenlopende aspecten van het leven die ons wereldbeeld vormen. Haar werk viert de diversiteit en complexiteit van het menselijk bestaan.
Set in a Lusaka suburb, this engaging story follows a young girl as she navigates the challenges of adolescence. Through her journey, themes of growth and self-discovery are explored, capturing the essence of coming-of-age experiences. Ellen Banda-Aaku's debut work, which garnered the prestigious Macmillan Writer's Prize for Africa in 2004, offers a poignant look at the struggles and triumphs of youth.
Winner of the Penguin Prize for African Writing 2010 (fiction). Destined from birth to inhabit two very different worlds - that of her father, the wealthy Joseph Sakavungo, and that of her mother, his mistress - this emotive tale takes us to the heart of a young girl's attempts to come to terms with her own identity and fashion a future for herself from the patchwork of the life she was born into. Beautifully constructed, warm and wise, this is a novel that will transport the reader to a world in which we can all become more of the sum of our parts.