Ayobami Adebayo quotes

'Stay with Me' started out being very political, largely because I'm a little obsessed with politics. (Ayobami Adebayo)

I established my first writing routine when I was 13. The school year had just ended, and I'd won a stack of books for being the best student in a number of subjects. The pile included several 60-leaved notebooks that I decided to fill with short stories.

Ayobami Adebayo

My mother used to laugh that if they asked me to clean up my room, I would spend so much time reading every tiny bit of paper, a receipt or whatever, instead of throwing it in the trash.

Ayobami Adebayo

I'm still startled when people ask me for writing advice.

Ayobami Adebayo

Having children does become tied to a sense of identity and our value as humans.

Ayobami Adebayo

I am interested in the idea that people should be able to define their own happiness.

Ayobami Adebayo

I have always been very interested in the idea of loneliness and the presumption that romantic relationships are supposed to rid you of that.

Ayobami Adebayo

I think a large part of being human centers on the state of being alone, and we try to mitigate that in so many ways.

Ayobami Adebayo

When I was in my late teens, a couple of friends passed away suddenly. This was quite distressing, but after a while, as tends to happen when one is once or twice removed from grief, I stopped thinking about them all the time.

Ayobami Adebayo

I come from a part of Nigeria where a lot of value is placed on implicit communication. The 'well brought up' child is the one who can pick up nonverbal cues from adults and interpret them correctly.

Ayobami Adebayo

I'd always been interested in Nigeria's past. (Ayobami Adebayo)

There is a strong view in Nigeria, as in many other cultures, that a marriage is not complete without children. I don't agree; I'm wary of the idea that people have to have some particular functionality in order to be full members of society.

Ayobami Adebayo

Never lend people money you can't afford to give them as a gift.

Ayobami Adebayo

There's this idea that at the lowest rungs of the social ladder in an African family is a childless woman - and the lowest rung of all is a motherless child.

Ayobami Adebayo

To be transported into another world is my very favourite part of reading.

Ayobami Adebayo

When I started working on 'Stay With Me,' I thought it would take two years to complete the novel.

Ayobami Adebayo

I think there is a dissonance between how much is expected of you as a young person, whether you are a man or a woman: you are supposed to go to university; you get a master's degree, maybe two, particularly if you come from the middle class.

Ayobami Adebayo

There is a strong view in Nigeria, as in many other cultures, that a marriage is not complete without children. I don't agree; I'm wary of the idea that people have to have some particular functionality in order to be full members of society. I think it's a very dangerous idea. Humans are humans and they are worthy of respect...

Ayobami Adebayo