Uwem Akpan was born in southern Nigeria . He was ordained as a Jesuit priest in 2003 and received his MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan in 2006. In 2007, he began a teaching assignment at a seminary in Harare , Zimbabwe . quot;It is not merely the subject that makes Akpanamp;#039;s...writing so astonishing, translucent, and horrifying all at once; it is his talent with metaphor and imagery, his immersion into character and place....Uwem Akpan has given these children their voices, and for the compassion and art in his stories I am grateful and changed.quot; --Susan Straight, Washington Post Book World (front page review)