Maaza Mengiste

Maaza Mengiste is an Ethiopian-American writer born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and living in the United States. Her debut novel, the award-winning Beneath the Lion’s Gaze was named one of the 10 best contemporary African books by the Guardian. Among other places, her work has appeared in The New York Times, Lettre Internationale, Granta, Callaloo Journal, The Granta Anthology of the African Short Story, and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Maaza Mengiste writes fiction and nonfiction dealing with migration, the Ethiopian revolution, and the plight of sub-Saharan immigrants arriving in Europe. She is currently teaching creative writing at Princeton University and Queens College of the City University of New York.