Renewed Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has been called out for plagiarism by a London based female author.
Chimamanda Ngozie is being accused of stealing the idea for one of her bestselling books from another literal work.
The author identified as Ann Giwa-Amu took to popular streaming platform YouTube where she shared a video calming that Chimamanda plagiarized a portion of her book for her own literal work.
The book, in particular, is said to be the critically acclaimed ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ which she said the author plagiarized from her own novel titled ‘Sade: United we stand.’
According to her, Chimamamda was able to pick on her literal work due to her connection with the late Chinua Achibe who served as the editorial adviser for the literal agency she publish under.
Ann said that after writing ‘Sade: United we Stand”, she gave the manuscript to the ‘Things Fall Apart’ author who then passed it on to the female activist and fellow country woman for her to rewrite it.
sharing documents to back her claims, Ann went on to say that she discovered Chimamanda had plagiarized her book in 2013 when she saw a poster in London advertising the film Half of a Yellow sun.
In response to the accusation, the Wylie Agency literal agency representing Chimamanda released an official statement that denied the claims.
Surprisingly, the agency revealed through its statement that Anne Giwa-Amu was indebted to Chimamamanda based on the ruling of a British court which ordered her to pay an undisclosed amount of money to the author and her lawyer for damages.
The statement reads in full:
STATEMENT REGARDING FALSE CLAIMS FROM ANNE GIWA-AMU
We, the Wylie Agency, are Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s literary agents.
In 2016, Anne Giwa-Amu brought a legal claim against Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her publishers. Giwa-Amu alleged that Adichie’s novel HALF OF A YELLOW SUN had plagiarized her own novel. A professional independent reader was appointed to read both novels. The reader concluded that there was absolutely no basis for Giwa-Amu’s claim and advised that the claim should not be pursued. Giwa-Amu nevertheless continued with the claim.
On 15 February 2019, Anne Giwa-Amu’s claim brought against Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her publishers was struck out by the court. The court determined that her claim was ‘an abuse of the court’s process.’ The court ordered Giwa-Amu to pay Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her publishers the sum of £14,250, which Giwa-Amu failed to pay. The court also ordered Giwa-Amu to pay the legal costs Adichie incurred in defending her baseless claim. To date, Giwa-Amu has not paid the money.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her publishers had never heard of Giwa-Amu’s novel until she brought her delusional claim. Her present allegations are false, libellous and constitute a harassment to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Further legal actions are being taken.
Signed: The Wylie Agency
Giwa-Amu, however, has replied to the statement, and this is what she had to say.
Photo Credit: Instagram
