Chasing Freedom - by Simukai Chigudu (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An exquisitely crafted memoir, sweeping from Zimbabwe to Oxford, that lays bare the violent, enduring legacy of colonialism on both a country and a family

Simukai Chigudu grew up in the shadow of Africa's struggles for liberation. As he navigates the tangled threads of personal and political history, he is guided by one central question: What does it mean to be truly free?

Chigudu's father fought in a guerilla war against the white supremacist regime of Rhodesia. He met Chigudu's mother while in exile in Uganda. After spending seven years apart, they reunite to build a life in newly independent Zimbabwe, hoping to offer their son the opportunities they never had. Yet Chigudu grows up in a world where colonialism never fully ended.

Racism persists: in the elite, white-run prep schools that groom him for life outside of Africa; in the British university where he is the only Black man in his class of 250; and finally as an Oxford professor, where a statue of the man who colonized his homeland--Cecil Rhodes--stands proudly on campus. As Zimbabwe convulses in the aftershocks of empire, facing political turmoil and economic collapse, Chigudu sees a parallel unravelling in his own family. His father, scarred by war, has turned to alcohol; his mother has grown distant and sorrowful.

In this gorgeous and atmospheric family memoir, Chigudu embarks on a quest to understand how the trauma of decolonization has shaped not only his country, but his very identity--as an African, a migrant, a Black man, a doctor, a scholar, and a son. What he discovers is that colonization is a potent force that continues to upend lives and institutions. Chasing Freedom is an intimate reckoning with the ghosts of the past that haunt our politics and our psyches in ways we can't always see.

Review Quotes

"A powerful memoir of postcolonial unease . . . [and] an elegant exploration of how political liberation does not always bring freedom for oneself. . . . [Chasing Freedom] asks what it means to stand up to the past without being trapped by it, and whether a different kind of freedom might still be possible."--The Guardian

"Moving and highly readable . . . [Chigudu] skillfully fuse[s] his own story with the broader sweep of history. . . . The writing is a pleasure."--Financial Times

"In Chasing Freedom, Simukai Chigudu seamlessly blends the history of African colonization and the jagged paths to independence with the story of his remarkable family. It is also the story of those for whom these massive global transformations were mere backdrops for growing up across continents, cultures, and agendas--of those children of African liberation now empowered to remake the world that colonialism made."--Louis Chude-Sokei, author of Floating in a Most Peculiar Way

"A well-crafted blend of personal and political history."--Kirkus Reviews

"A fascinating memoir, both intimate and epic, which will teach you more about the legacies of colonialism than a hundred op-eds, or a dozen textbooks."--Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland

"Beautifully written . . . Great biographers need to be both lacerating and humane: Chigudu certainly has those qualities. To understand all is not necessarily to forgive all; it is simply, well, to understand. The even-handed empathy he displays throughout to all the players in his life's story makes this a truly compelling read."--The Spectator

"A deeply personal and moving exploration of the intersections of history, identity, and belonging . . . this book is a raw and unflinching account of the search for self amid the burdens of the past."--Peter Godwin, author of When a Crocodile Eats the Sun

"In this remarkable memoir, Simukai Chigudu unravels the meanings--both world-historical and personal--of colonialism, history, and liberation. Chasing Freedom is a work of real power and beauty, as well as disarming truthfulness."--Amia Srinivasan, author of The Right to Sex

"What does it mean to be truly free from the burdens of the past? Simukai Chigudu's masterful and intimate memoir makes essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the ways in which the legacies of empire ricochet through the generations continuing to shape individual lives."--Aminatta Forna, author of The Devil That Danced on the Water

"The voice of this memoir is utterly captivating, witty, and fiercely intelligent. Chasing Freedom is a finely observed, gripping account of growing up in Zimbabwe and building a life in Britain, told with such clarity and precision that I forgot I was reading."--Dina Nayeri, author of The Ungrateful Refugee

"Simukai Chigudu's Chasing Freedom is a raw and moving memoir--a complicated, engrossing, and, ultimately, brilliant portrait of a family navigating the minefields of the postcolonial world."--Jonny Steinberg, author of Winnie and Nelson

About the Author

Simukai Chigudu is associate professor of African politics at the University of Oxford and fellow of St. Antony's College. He was previously a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. He is one of the founding members of Rhodes Must Fall in Oxford, a campaign to remove the statue of Cecil Rhodes at Oriel College--and decolonize the university.