# Angela Flournoy

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{{Short description|American writer|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Infobox writer
| name           =
| image          = Angela Flournoy 2016.jpg

| caption        = Flournoy at the 2016 [Texas Book Festival](/source/Texas_Book_Festival)

| birth_name     = 
| birth_place    = 
| birth_date     = 
| alma_mater     = [University of Southern California](/source/University_of_Southern_California)<br>[Iowa Writers' Workshop](/source/Iowa_Writers'_Workshop), [University of Iowa](/source/University_of_Iowa)

| notable_works  = ''[The Turner House](/source/The_Turner_House)'' (2015)<br>''[The Wilderness](/source/The_Wilderness_(Flournoy_novel))'' (2025)
| awards         = [First Novelist Award](/source/First_Novelist_Award)<br>5 Under 35 Honoree
| website        = {{URL|www.angelaflournoy.com/}}

}}
'''Angela Flournoy''' is an American writer. Her [debut novel](/source/debut_novel) ''[The Turner House](/source/The_Turner_House)'' (2015) won the [First Novelist Award](/source/First_Novelist_Award) and was shortlisted for the [National Book Award for Fiction](/source/National_Book_Award_for_Fiction).<ref>{{cite web |title=Angela Flournoy wins VCU Cabell First Novelist Award for 'The Turner House' |url=http://www.richmond.com/entertainment/books/article_6bf7ee64-e528-55a8-9000-547974cacf52.html |website=richmond.com}} Retrieved 2026-05-25.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=National Book Award 2015 Winners |url=https://www.nationalbook.org/awards-prizes/national-book-awards-2015/ |website=nationalbook.org}} Retrieved 2026-05-25.</ref> It was shortlisted for the [PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize](/source/PEN%2FRobert_W._Bingham_Prize) for Debut Fiction, nominated for an [NAACP Image Award](/source/NAACP_Image_Award), and named a ''[New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)'' Notable Book of 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2016/08/09/483875698/diversity-in-book-publishing-isnt-just-about-writers-marketing-matters-too |title= Diversity In Book Publishing Isn't Just About Writers — Marketing Matters, Too |first= Jean |last=Ho |work= [NPR](/source/NPR) |date= August 9, 2016 |access-date= December 13, 2023 |archive-date= December 13, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20231213062929/https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2016/08/09/483875698/diversity-in-book-publishing-isnt-just-about-writers-marketing-matters-too |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.themillions.com/2015/10/the-tortoise-not-the-hare-the-millions-interviews-angela-flournoy.html|title=The Tortoise, Not the Hare: The Millions Interviews Angela Flournoy|last=Vitcavage|first=Adam|date=October 27, 2005|work=The Millions|access-date=April 1, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://therumpus.net/2016/02/the-saturday-rumpus-interview-angela-flournoy-2/|title=The Saturday Rumpus Interview: Angela Flournoy|last=Philyaw|first=Deesha|website=The Rumpus.net|language=en-US|date=February 13, 2016|access-date=April 2, 2016}}</ref> She was also named a [National Book Foundation's 5 Under 35](/source/National_Book_Foundation's_5_Under_35) in 2015, nominated by her former teacher [ZZ Packer](/source/ZZ_Packer).<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=2015: Discover the 5 Under 35 Honorees |url=https://www.nationalbook.org/awards-prizes/5-under-35-2015/ |website=National Book Foundation }}Recovered 2026-05-05.</ref>

== Early life and education ==
Flournoy was raised in Southern California. Her mother was from [Los Angeles](/source/Los_Angeles) and father from [Detroit](/source/Detroit).<ref name=":1" /> Flournoy attended the [University of Southern California](/source/University_of_Southern_California), and the [Iowa Writers' Workshop](/source/Iowa_Writers'_Workshop) at the [University of Iowa](/source/University_of_Iowa).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=buzzfeed /> She started developing her first novel, ''[The Turner House](/source/The_Turner_House)'' while attending the Iowa Workshop, where she frequently traveled to Detroit to visit her father's family.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://theseam.co/aiatla-podcast-angela-flournoy-the-turner-house/|title=The Risks Angela Flournoy Took|date=2016-06-23|work=The Seam|access-date=2018-06-09|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Career ==
After graduating, Flournoy taught writing for the [University of Iowa](/source/University_of_Iowa), [Trinity Washington University](/source/Trinity_Washington_University), and the [DC Public Library](/source/District_of_Columbia_Public_Library).<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://lareviewofbooks.org/contributor/angela-flournoy/|title=Angela Flournoy|website=The Los Angeles Review of Books|language=en-US|access-date=April 2, 2016}}</ref> She published ''The Turner House'' in 2015.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://beltmag.com/there-aint-no-haints-in-detroit-an-interview-with-author-angela-flournoy/|author=Zoe Zolbrod|title="There Aint No Haints in Detroit!": An Interview With Author Angela Flournoy|website=Belt Magazine|language=en-US|date=June 18, 2015|access-date=April 2, 2016}}</ref> ''[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)'' called it "an engrossing and remarkably mature first novel...assured and memorable."<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/03/books/review/the-turner-house-by-angela-flournoy.html?_r=0|title='The Turner House,' by Angela Flournoy|last=Thomas|first=Matthew|date=April 29, 2015|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 22, 2016}}</ref> [BuzzFeed](/source/BuzzFeed) describes Flournoy as "the most lauded debut novelist in America," noting her many awards and honors, as well as ''The Turner House''<nowiki/>'s strong sales: "According to [Bookscan](/source/Nielsen_BookScan), which tracks around 70% of U.S. book sales, her book has sold over 15,000 copies in paperback and hardcover as of April [2016]; anything over 10,000 is generally considered high for [literary fiction](/source/literary_fiction)."<ref name=buzzfeed>{{Cite news|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/doree/america-is-ready-for-angela-flournoy|title=Why America Is Ready For Novelist Angela Flournoy|last=Shafrir|first=Doree|date=April 25, 2016|work=BuzzFeed|access-date=July 22, 2016}}</ref>

In 2020 she was scheduled to go on a  [State Department](/source/United_States_Department_of_State)-sponsored reading tour of Germany. Flournoy canceled at short notice amid tensions with Iran and published a justification in ''[The New Yorker](/source/The_New_Yorker)''.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-difficulty-of-being-a-cultural-ambassador-for-america|title=The Difficulty of Being a Cultural Ambassador in 2020|magazine=The New Yorker |date=24 January 2020 |last1=Flournoy |first1=Angela }}</ref>

Flournoy attributes her understanding of character development to [Zora Neale Hurston's](/source/Zora_Neale_Hurston) ''[Mules and Men](/source/Mules_and_Men).''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/09/by-heart-angela-flournoy-zora-neale-hurston/403168/|title=Subverting the Rule of 'Write What You Know'|last=Fassler|first=Joe|website=The Atlantic|language=en-US|date=September 1, 2015|access-date=April 2, 2016}}</ref>

''[The Wilderness](/source/The_Wilderness_(Flournoy_novel))'' was longlisted for the 2025 [National Book Award](/source/National_Book_Award_for_Fiction) and a finalist for the 2025 [National Book Critics Circle Award](/source/National_Book_Critics_Circle_Award).<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Wilderness |url=https://www.nationalbook.org/books/the-wilderness/ |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=National Book Foundation |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The National Book Critics Circle Awards 2025 |url=https://www.bookreporter.com/features/awards/the-national-book-critics-circle-awards-2025 |website=bookreporter.com }}Retrieved 2026-05-05.</ref>

== Works ==

* {{cite book |last=Flournoy |first=Angela |title=[The Turner House](/source/The_Turner_House) |date=2015 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |isbn=978-0-544-30316-4 |publication-place=Boston New York}}<ref name="h572">{{cite web |last=Thomas |first=Matthew |date=2015-04-29 |title=‘The Turner House,’ by Angela Flournoy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/03/books/review/the-turner-house-by-angela-flournoy.html |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title='The Turner House' – a magnificent, unsentimental debut – visits the struggles of Detroit through one family's history |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/Books/Book-Reviews/2015/0430/The-Turner-House-a-magnificent-unsentimental-debut-visits-the-struggles-of-Detroit-through-one-family-s-history |access-date=2025-10-22 |work=Christian Science Monitor |issn=0882-7729}}</ref>
* {{cite book |last=Flournoy |first=Angela |title=[The Wilderness](/source/The_Wilderness_(Flournoy_novel)) |date=2025 |publisher=[Mariner Books](/source/Mariner_Books) |isbn=978-0-06-331877-9 |publication-place=New York}}<ref name="m452">{{cite web |last=Summers |first=Juana |date=2025-09-16 |title=Author Angela Flournoy explores 20 years of adult friendship in 'The Wilderness' |url=https://www.npr.org/2025/09/16/nx-s1-5307333/author-angela-flournoy-explores-20-years-of-adult-friendship-in-the-wilderness |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=NPR}}</ref><ref name="t791">{{cite web |last=Orr |first=Niela |date=2025-09-16 |title=Book Review: ‘The Wilderness,’ by Angela Flournoy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/books/review/the-wilderness-angela-flournoy.html |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=May 23, 2025 |title=The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780063318779 |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=www.publishersweekly.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-09-22 |title=Why Angela Flournoy Writes About Friendship and Grief |url=https://www.altaonline.com/books/fiction/a65884332/angela-flournoy-why-i-write-wilderness/ |access-date=2025-10-22 |website=Alta Online |language=en-US}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Authority control}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
* [https://www.angelaflournoy.com/bio/ Official Website]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flournoy, Angela}}
Category:21st-century American novelists
Category:African-American novelists
Category:Iowa Writers' Workshop alumni
Category:University of Southern California alumni
Category:Trinity Washington University faculty
Category:University of Iowa faculty
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:Living people
Category:Novelists from Iowa
Category:21st-century American women academics
Category:21st-century American women novelists
Category:21st-century American academics
Category:21st-century African-American women writers
Category:21st-century African-American writers

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Angela Flournoy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Flournoy) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Flournoy?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.