Trifonia Melibea Obono
Trifonia Melibea Obono
Trifonia Melibea Obono was born in 1982 in Equatorial Guinea. She is an academic, novelist, and LGBTQ+ activist. She has a B.A. in Political Science and Journalism and a M.A. in International Development from the University of Murcia in Spain. She is currently completing her doctorate in interdisciplinary studies at the University of Salamanca in Spain. Obono is a faculty member at the National University of Equatorial Guinea. Her novel La Bastarda is banned in Equatorial Guinea because of its lesbian main character. La Bastarda was the first book by an Equatorial Guinean woman to be translated into English. Obono was awarded the International Prize for African Literature in 2018 and the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative Award in 2019.
Translated Titles by Trifonia Melibea Obono
The first novel by an Equatorial Guinean woman to be translated into English, La Bastarda is the story of the orphaned teen Okomo, who lives under the watchful eye of her grandmother and dreams of finding her father. Forbidden from seeking him out, she enlists the help of other village outcasts: her gay uncle and a gang of ‘mysterious’ girls reveling in their so-called indecency. Drawn into their illicit trysts, Okomo finds herself falling in love with their leader and rebelling against the rigid norms of Fang culture.