Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun

Lore & Background

Tọlá Okogwu moved from Nigeria to the United Kingdom and always wanted to write a book set in the country. She got the inspiration for the novel after thinking about African and Black girls who have been taught to hate their natural hair and she toyed with the idea of having the hair they think to be a flaw become their greatest strengths. The novel was as inspired by Marvel universe and the science fiction movies she grew up watching with her parents.

The book received generally positive receptions from book reviewers and readers alike. It was one of the most anticipated middle grade novels of 2022 by Book Riot, The Nerdist, and Publishers Weekly. In an interview conducted by Kirkus Reviews, the novel was praised and called 'a delightful blend of adventure, heart, and Africanfuturism.' The Guardian wrote in its review that it's 'a fast-paced, atmospheric magic-school fantasy for readers aged 8+, woven with deeper themes of identity and belonging.' Publishers Weekly praised Okogwu's writing stating that '[i]n Okogwu's vividly created Nigerian world, technology and an exploration of emotional internality interplay with a child’s literalized relationship with her hair, making for an enjoyable X-Men-leaning series starter.'

Onyeka and The Academy of the Sun is in production at Westbrook Studios and Yoruba Saxon for Netflix. The film will be executive produced by Tọlá Okogwu, Heather Washington and Jessica Oyelowo, with Will Smith, Jon Mone and David Oyelowo serving as producers.

Reader's Guide

Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun holds significance as a debut novel that centers a British-Nigerian girl whose natural hair becomes a source of psychokinetic power, directly addressing the theme of African and Black girls learning to embrace their natural hair. The novel is noted for its Africanfuturist setting and has been compared to the X-Men series. Its positive reception from major outlets like The Guardian and Publishers Weekly, along with being named one of the most anticipated middle grade novels of 2022, indicates its impact on the genre. The ongoing Netflix adaptation further underscores its cultural reach, involving producers such as Will Smith and David Oyelowo. The work contributes to the growing body of Africanfuturist literature for young readers, blending technology, emotional depth, and identity exploration within a Nigerian-inspired magical school framework.

Did You Know?

• The novel was inspired by the idea of hair that African and Black girls have been taught to hate becoming their greatest strength.
• The book was inspired by the Marvel universe and science fiction movies the author watched with her parents.
• Will Smith, Jon Mone, and David Oyelowo are serving as producers for the film adaptation.

The Novel and Its World

Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun arrived in 2022 as the debut novel of Tọlá Okogwu, a British-Nigerian writer, journalist, and hair care educator. The book is a middle grade science fiction story that follows Onyeka, a British-Nigerian girl who discovers that her hair possesses a psychokinetic power. This revelation propels her into an elite school located in Nigeria, where young people with similar abilities are trained for the purpose of saving their country. The novel sits at the intersection of speculative fiction and coming-of-age narrative, giving young readers a protagonist whose identity is shaped by both her dual heritage and her extraordinary gift. As Okogwu's first published novel, it establishes a world where Africanfuturist imagination meets the grounded emotional concerns of a child navigating a new environment. The premise positions hair—long a site of cultural tension for Black girls in the West—as the very source of superhuman capability, reframing what has often been treated as a problem into a superpower.

Development and Creative Origins

Tọlá Okogwu's path to writing this novel was shaped by her own migration from Nigeria to the United Kingdom. She had long harbored a desire to craft a story set in her country of origin, and the concept crystallized when she reflected on the experience of African and Black girls who have been conditioned to despise their natural hair. From that observation, she explored the idea of inverting the narrative: what if the very feature they were taught to see as a flaw became their most powerful asset? That inversion became the engine of the entire story. Beyond this personal and cultural impetus, Okogwu has cited the Marvel universe and the science fiction films she watched alongside her parents during her childhood as formative influences on the novel's tone and structure. The result is a book that channels the excitement of superhero origin stories through a distinctly African lens, blending personal memory with speculative worldbuilding to create something that feels both familiar to young fans of comic-book narratives and entirely new in its cultural specificity.

Critical Reception and Anticipation

Before its publication, Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun was flagged as one of the most anticipated middle grade titles of 2022 by Book Riot, The Nerdist, and Publishers Weekly, signaling broad industry excitement. Once reviews began arriving, the consensus was warmly positive from both critics and readers. Kirkus Reviews, in an interview with the author, described the book as a delightful blend of adventure, heart, and Africanfuturism. The Guardian highlighted its pacing and atmosphere, calling it a fast-paced magic-school fantasy suitable for readers aged eight and up, while noting that it weaves in deeper explorations of identity and belonging. Publishers Weekly offered a particularly detailed assessment, praising Okogwu's vividly constructed Nigerian setting where technology and emotional interiority intertwine with a child's literal relationship to her hair. The review drew a comparison to the X-Men franchise, suggesting the novel reads as the promising first installment of a potential series. Across these reviews, the novel was consistently celebrated for balancing accessible adventure with meaningful thematic depth.

Screen Adaptation and Future

The success of the novel quickly attracted the attention of the streaming world. Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun is currently in production at Westbrook Studios and Yoruba Saxon for Netflix, marking a significant step in bringing Africanfuturist storytelling to a global screen audience. Tọlá Okogwu herself is attached as an executive producer, ensuring her creative vision carries through to the adaptation. She is joined in that role by Heather Washington and Jessica Oyelowo. The producer slate further includes Will Smith, Jon Mone, and David Oyelowo, a lineup that signals both the commercial ambition behind the project and its deep roots in Black creative leadership. For Okogwu, the transition from page to screen represents the next chapter in a story she originally conceived as a way to reimagine the relationship between Black girls and their hair. The Netflix adaptation promises to extend the world of Onyeka and her academy to audiences who may never pick up a middle grade novel, potentially introducing the concept of Africanfuturist heroism to a far broader readership and viewer base.