The Freedom Artist

The Freedom Artist . . . can be read as a kind of revision of Plato's allegory of the cave, in which art, rather than offering distracting illusions, can tap into foundational truths and help us free ourselves from the prison of existence. The concise, declarative prose and the parable-like architecture of the stories resemble ancient forms of wisdom literature.-- "Wall Street Journal"
With a slow burn arc emblematic of Toni Cade Bambara's The Salt Eaters, and prophetic warnings of apocalypse akin to Octavia Butler's The Parable of the Sower, The Freedom Artist offers a contemplative look at post-truth society.-- "Sierra Magazine"
Haunting and inspiring . . . In this story of political abuse and existential angst, Okri employs a powerful and rare style reminiscent of free verse and evoking a mythical timbre. This is a vibrantly immediate and penetrating novel of ideas."-- "Publishers Weekly, Starred Review"
Like George Orwell and Margaret Atwood before him, the Booker Prize-winning Okri writes a passionate cri de coeur, a clarion call to activists everywhere to resist apathy and recognize that we are all on this beautiful globe together and that it is ours to lose.-- "Library Journal"
Okri's somber, fablelike novel is a call to rally against oppressive institutions and for broader social consciousness. In that regard, it's an inheritor of The Handmaid's Tale, Fahrenheit 451, and Things Fall Apart . . . Okri's writing is sturdy and graceful, fully inhabiting the authoritative tone of mythmaking.-- "Kirkus Reviews"