Fortune's Favored Child

Trade Cloth – $35.00
ISBN 978-0-8101-2973-3Fortune's Favored Child
Raouf Mama is widely beloved by children and adults alike for his books and especially for his African and multicultural storytelling, which incorporates poetry, song, music, and dance.
In Fortune’s Favored Child, the master storyteller tells his own story, beginning in the West African country of Benin. Through a harrowing experience with sickness, an encounter with a clairvoyant traditional healer, and astonishing twists of fortune, the protagonist struggles to uncover his real identity, to get an education, and to make his own way in the world. His journey takes him to the shores of the United States to attend graduate school at the University of Michigan and begin a new chapter in his life.
—Gina Barreca, author of Babes in Boyland: A Personal History of Co-Education in the Ivy League
"Told in a voice that is distinct for its unwavering stance against tyranny and injustice, and driven by a fiercely passionate hope to get the words right, Mama's story is a great gift."
—Bruce Weigl, author of The Abundance of Nothing (TriQuarterly Books), Finalist for Pulitzer Prize in Poetry
“Rich in humor, sorrow, and thought-provoking plot turns.” —Booklist