From the award-winning poet and playwright behind Barber Shop Chronicles, The Half-God of Rainfall is an epic story and a lyrical exploration of pride, power and female revenge.

Praise for The Half-God of Rainfall: ‘I loved it … When I was making Good Omens and getting no time to read, I still found time to read it.’ Neil Gaiman on Twitter 'A world-beating exploration of mythology, power and sport, all stitched together by the unique and wonderful pen of Inua Ellams, a master craftsman in storytelling' Nikesh Shukla ‘If you love the swish of draining rain, you’ll love The Half God of Rainfall. Ellams creates a fresh flood of three-pointers and a Herculean dunk. The gravity of his message is as deep as a sunk shot from half-court’ Peter Khan ‘For 21st century readers who have fallen into the rhythm of the courts, this is mythopoetics at its best. By the strength of its careful braiding of song and swift slashes through a cross-pantheon of Yoruba and Greek deities, The Half-God of Rainfall stitches us into a single breath of wonder and shared delight at the journey of OluDemi Modupe. Inua Ellams possesses an intuitive and fluid grasp of the eternal virtues and heroic narratives that constitute our transglobal imaginations’ Major Jackson ‘Part Homeric-style epic, part female-focused revenge tragedy. Each line feels as though it’s carved into stone—solid, striking, glinting with beauty, but steeped in hard-edged truth. A true story for the ages, as well as for the politics of the present day’ Bridget Minamore ‘Ellams’ deeply moving epic transcends the printed word into dance and song. In reading, I became witness, worshipper and player’ C. S. Lozie ‘Inua writes in brimstone and beautiful’ William Augustus Chase Praise for Inua Ellams: ‘Ellams’ poetry gleams with a dusty, worn, deeply original beauty and he remains such wonderfully generous company’ Metro ‘There’s something uniquely 21st Century about Ellams’ voice which somehow absorbs the whole experience of colonialism without being totally defined by it’ Scotsman

THEATRE PRODUCTION: Published to coincide with the Kiln theatre’s production of The Half-God of Rainfall – so there will be plenty of opportunity for sales and publicity cross-fertilisation. A STAR ON THE RISE: Inua’s profile is growing every day. In the past few years he has been commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, Tate Modern, Louis Vuitton, Chris Ofili, BBC Radio & Television. Following on from The Barber Shop Chronicles at the National Theatre, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He has been profiled in the Guardian and was a contributor to the bestselling The Good Immigrant anthology. A STRONG SALES RECORD: Inua’s previous poetry collections have sold well. Both Candy Coated Unicorns and Converse All Stars and Thirteen Fairy Negro Tales sold over 2000 copies each. Competition: Barber Shop Chronicles;The Vanishing Half;The Mothers;Queenie;Such a Fun Age;Ren Dang;Shine, Darling;My Darling From Lions;Poems for a Pandemic;Poems of the Decade;Milk and Honey;How to Be an Antiracist. Ella Frears;Will Harris;Rachel Long;Rachael Allen;Rupi Kaur;Charlie Cox;Claudia Rankine