Summary

The short story “Jumping Monkey Hill” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie follows a woman named Ujunwa who is at an African Writers’ Workshop in Cape Town. The workshop is being held at a fancy resort full of tourists called Jumping Monkey Hill. 

Edward Campbell, the organizer of the workshop, picks Ujunwa up at the airport and tries to get to know her, but Ujunwa is reluctant to reveal too much about herself. They wait for another attendee, a Ugandan man, and then head to the resort. There, Ujunwa meets all the other workshop participants – people from various African countries who live all over the world. Edward tells everyone the schedule for the two-week workshop, announces that the Ugandan man will be the workshop leader, and introduces his wife Hilary.

The next day, Ujunwa calls her mother to tell her about the resort and the funny conversation she had with Hilary at breakfast. Hilary had asked Ujunwa if she was royalty and when Ujunwa jokingly said she was a princess, Hilary believed it...