Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has said the death of her 21-month-old son, Nkanu, has changed her feelings toward Nigeria, adding that she no longer wants to return to the country.
In an interview with The New York Times, Adichie said her connection to her homeland has shifted following the loss.
Asked whether Nigeria still felt close to her heart, she replied: “My feelings toward Nigeria have changed. I do not want to go back to Nigeria.”
Nkanu, one of Adichie’s twin boys, died in January 2026 after a medical emergency at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital in Lagos.
The family was in Nigeria for the Christmas holidays when the child developed an illness that later required hospital treatment, including sedation for an MRI.
He suffered cardiac arrest and died the following day.Adichie has previously accused the hospital of negligence. An inquest into the circumstances of the death remains ongoing.
She noted that her surviving children could be the only reason she might consider returning, as her daughter still sees Nigeria as her “happy place.”
Before the tragedy, Adichie described Nigeria as central to her identity and writing, saying it gave her “everything” she needed to become a writer.
The pain of losing her son has altered that bond.“I mean, it is so surreal, all of this. I still can’t believe we’re talking about my son who died,” she said.
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