Calixthe Beyala

The most successful female writer from Francophone Africa, Calixthe Beyala occupies an unusual place in French literary and popular culture. Her novels are bestsellers and she appears regularly on French television, yet a conviction for plagiarism has tarnished her reputation. Thus, she is both an “authentic” African author and a proven literary “fake.”

In Calixthe Beyala, Nicki Hitchcott considers representations of Beyala in the media, critical responses to her writing, and Beyala’s efforts to position herself as a champion of women’s rights. Hitchcott pays equal attention to Beyala’s novels, tracing their explorations of the role of migration in the creation of personal identity.