Press Kit

REPRESENTATION

LITERARY AGENT: Claire Wilson (Rogers, Coleridge & White)
FILM AGENT: Michelle Kroes (Creative Artists Agency)
PUBLISHERS: Simon & Schuster UK, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Macmillan Children’s Books

AUTHOR BIO LONG:

Tọlá Okogwu is an award-winning British-Nigerian children’s author and journalist. Born in Nigeria, but raised in London, she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. She has written for several publications, including Refinery29, Huffington Post and Black Ballad.

Tọlá believes it’s important for children to read books that are reflective of their own experiences, as well as other cultures and she seeks to create these opportunities through her books and wider writing. Her self-published picture book series, DADDY DO MY HAIR is a firm family favourite. The books were inspired by the relationship between her husband and daughters and are designed to celebrate the special bond between father and child, whilst also showcasing the beauty of Afro textured hair.

Tọlá’s debut middle grade series with Simon & Schuster was published in 2022. The best-selling first book in the series, ONYEKA AND THE ACADEMY OF THE SUN was the Waterstones Book of the Month on publication and a winner of the 2023 Children’s Africana Book Award for Older Readers. It was shortlisted for the 2023 British Book Awards, the Barnes & Noble Children’s and YA Book Awards, the inaugural The Week Junior Book Awards and longlisted for the 2023 Jhalak Prize. The audio book was also named a 2023 ALSC Notable Children’s Recording. The second instalment, ONYEKA AND THE RISE OF THE REBELS was published in March 2023 with a third book coming in 2024. The series has been picked up by Netflix and is currently in development, with David Oyelowo and Will Smith producing.

Tọlá also writes as part of the dynamic duo, Lola Morayo with five books in the, AZIZA’S SECRET FAIRY DOOR series published by Macmillan Children’s Books. Tọlá lives in Kent, England with her husband and two daughters.

AUTHOR BIO SHORT:

Tọlá Okogwu was born in Nigeria but raised in London, England. She studied Journalism and spent some years exploring the world of blogging, haircare and freelance writing before returning to her first love…fiction. Tọlá’s debut novel, Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun was shortlisted for the British Book Awards, Barnes & Noble Children’s and YA Book Awards and The Week Junior Book Awards as well as longlisted for The Jhalak Prize. Her self-published picture book series, Daddy Do My Hair is a firm family favourite and Tọlá also writes as Lola Morayo. She lives in Kent, England with her husband, two daughters and all their books.

SOCIAL MEDIA

AUTHOR WEBSITE: www.tolaokogwu.com

TWITTER: www.twitter.com/tolaokogwu

INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/tolaokogwu

Photos

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Book Information

Coming Soon:

TITLE: Bekah and the Moon

PUBLICATION DATE: 25th April 2024

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK

ISBN: 9781398509481

ASIN: B0CCX4NYCT

BUY LINKS:
Amazon, Waterstones

SHORT SUMMARY:

A moving and magical picture book about the love between a young girl and the moon

“Luna’s here, there’s no need to fear.”

Bekah loves the moon, and she knows the moon loves her too. Each night, when shadows or strange noises frighten her, she is visited by Luna, who bathes the room in moonlight and chases away her fears. But as Luna appears less and less often, Bekah begins to doubt whether her love was ever real. When Luna returns, Bekah finds that even when someone can’t always be by your side, their love never leaves you.

Coming Soon:

TITLE: Onyeka and the Heroes of the Dawn (Onyeka #3)

PUBLICATION DATE: 28th March 2024

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK

ISBN: 9781398523128

ASIN: B0C9NZTD39

BUY LINKS:
Amazon, Waterstones

SHORT SUMMARY:

The extraordinary third book in the action-packed superhero series. Perfect for 8+ fans of Percy Jackson, Amari and the Night Brothersand Black Panther. Soon to be a feature film with a major streamer!

Solari – children with superpowers – have always been native to Nigeria, but Onyeka and her friends have been alerted to one hidden in England. Tasked with retrieving the young Solari, they successfully complete their mission, arriving safe and sound back at the Academy of the Sun with Tobi in tow.

Tobi’s identity and superpower remain a mystery, until a breadcrumb trail leads Onyeka to the truth. But someone else has uncovered the secret, and unlike Onyeka, they don’t have Tobi’s best interests at heart. Can our superhero save the day once again?

Coming Soon:

TITLE: Onyeka and the Secret Super Hero

PUBLICATION DATE: 15th February 2024

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK

ISBN: 9781398528772

BUY LINKS:
Amazon, Waterstones

SHORT SUMMARY:

A superpowered World Book Day story in the action-packed ONYEKA series from bestselling author Tọlá Okogwu. Perfect for 8+ fans of Percy Jackson, Marvel and DC!

Twelve-year-old Onyeka is enrolled at the Academy of the Sun, a school for superheroes called Solari. When she’s sent on a mission with her friends to investigate a series of freak weather incidents in a remote village, they aren’t expecting to find a top secret Solari with extraordinary superpowers. But is this new Solari friend or foe? There’s only one way for Onyeka to find out . . .

TITLE: Deji’s Haircut (Daddy Do My Hair #4)

PUBLICATION DATE: 27th April 2023

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK

ISBN: 9781398511484

ASIN: B0B8L1FD8H

BUY LINKS:
Amazon, Waterstones

SHORT SUMMARY:
A rhyming celebration of Afro hair, barbershops and father-son relationships, from hair care coach and author Tọlá Okogwu and rising star illustrator, Chanté Timothy.

Nana’s getting married, and today is the big day!
I’m her little page boy; Daddy’s giving her away.
“Deji and Daddy, just look at your hair!”
Uh-oh, we’re in trouble. Nana shoots us a glare.
“You better find a barber. You both need a cut.
Now hurry along,” she adds with a tut.

It’s the morning of Nana’s wedding, and Deji and Daddy need haircuts – right away! Join them on a race against the clock to make sure they look slick just in time to walk Nana down the aisle. This story features a fun and heart-warming portrayal of the quality time spent between parent and child

Also includes haircare tips for Afro hair from the author!

TITLE: Onyeka and the Rise of the Rebels (Onyeka #2)

UK PUBLICATION DATE: 2nd March 2023

US PUBLICATION DATE: 30th May 2023

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK, Margaret K. McElderry Books

HARDBACK ISBN: 978-1665912648

PAPERBACK ISBN: 978-1398505117

ASIN: B09YFH8BS9

BUY LINKS:
Waterstones
Amazon

SHORT SUMMARY:
The epic second book in the action-packed and empowering middle-grade superhero series and soon to be a feature film with a major streamer!

Power bursts through my body, and I gasp as my hair shoots out like an avenging sword. It slashes a line through the wooden decking of the walkway. With a deafening crack, the wood breaks apart, splintering with the force of the impact.

Having uncovered head teacher Dr Dòyìnbó’s hidden agenda behind the Academy of the Sun, Onyeka and her friends are on the run. But they’ve got bigger problems to worry about – they desperately need to find a way to restore Niyì’s Ike superpower and they need to locate Onyeka’s missing parents.

When their last safe house is uncovered, Onyeka turns to the only potential allies they have left; the Rogues, a group of rebels that have been trying to expose Dr Dòyìnbó’s lies for years. Joining forces, will the two groups be able to defeat their shared nemesis, or is there a new danger on the horizon for the Solari?

TITLE: Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun (Onyeka #1)

PUBLICATION DATE: 9th June 2022 (UK), 14th June 2022 (US)

PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Children’s UK, Margaret K. McElderry Books

HARDBACK ISBN: 978-1665912617

PAPERBACK ISBN: 9781398505087

ASIN: B09G3KL3N2

BUY LINKS:
Waterstones
Amazon

SHORT SUMMARY:
Black Panther meets Percy Jackson in this action-packed and empowering middle-grade series about a British-Nigerian girl who learns that her Afro hair has psychokinetic powers.

I close my eyes, trying to push the power bubbling in me back down . . . Hairbands snap as my hair shoots out like superfine arrows, tearing through everything in its path.

Onyeka has a lot of hair – the kind that makes strangers stop in the street. She’s always felt uncomfortable with her vibrant curls, until she makes an important discovery: she can control her hair with her mind!

Her mother quickly whisks her off to the Academy of the Sun, a school in Nigeria where Solari – children with superpowers – are trained. But Onyeka and her new friends at the Academy soon have to put their powers to the test as they find themselves embroiled in a momentous battle between truth and lies . . .