Author Bio

Esi Edugyan is a Canadian novelist known for writing historical fiction that explores identity, race, freedom, and belonging. She was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to parents who immigrated from Ghana. Edugyan studied creative writing at the University of Victoria and later earned a master’s degree in writing at Johns Hopkins University.

She has won several major literary awards. Her novel Half-Blood Blues won the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2011 and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Her novel Washington Black was also shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2018.

Edugyan’s work often blends history, adventure, science, and questions of identity, which is why Washington Black moves from a Caribbean plantation to scientific exploration across the world.