Nigerian Literature Review

What Lord Lugard Thought About Nigerians -Tunde Fagbenle

2009-11-24T21:18:00.000-08:00

This one got me thinking:

"Last week my friend, Babs Sobanjo, forwarded me the following piece said to be an extract from a Confidential Document by the British colonialist, Lord Frederick Lugard, who established the geographical contraption he, with the help of his lover, gave the name Nigeria.

The piece, snotty in the extreme, typifies the British in their calculating, self-serving, devilry. It represents Lugard’s appraisal of the African as represented by Nigeria and Nigerians."
What is Tunde thinking? What are you?
ENJOY

The Trial of Robert Mugabe -A review by Kenneth Kudakwashe Nyoka

2009-11-23T20:35:00.000-08:00

Here is a powerful review of my book, The Trial of Robert Mugabe, by a Zimbabwean civil rights activist.Kenneth Kudakwashe Nyoka. He is a former magistrate and prosecutor in Zimbabwe.
He is on: kknyoka@yahoo.co.uk

Enjoy

The lost promise of outrage

2009-11-07T10:54:00.000-08:00

One day, when the story of the renaissance of African literature is written, it will probably begin like this: There is Caine Prize, there is Adichie, there's Chris Abani, Helon Habila, Petina Gappah, Sefi Atta - have I missed your favorite, ah, Chikwava, Uwem Akpan and many more.
That day the story of our literature will be written, the first page, or at least the second, will surely contain words like these: Ikhide Ikheloa was a midwife, an excellent midwife, who sometimes pinched the pregnant woman to push harder, pricked the child to cry. Cry, baby, cry. Here, he has perfected the fine art of prodding, urging and shepherding of artists to realize their promises (no pun intended). A beautiful review of Ogochukwu Promise's Outrage.
Here's one of the many beautiful paragraphs:
"Art imitates life’s reality. The frustration with all of this is that there is a beautiful story in Outrage. In the indisciplined hands of vanity printing, the result is a tedious disaster. It is a rich but inchoate tale told by a talented storyteller whose voice has been garroted by communal mediocrity largely beyond her control."
ENJOY!

Season of Migration

2009-11-05T08:21:00.000-08:00

On the advice of several friends, I am in the process of merging this blog, Nigerian Literature Review, with my other, more expansive one, African Literature News & Review. This, I think, allows me to cover more issues beyond those of my beloved Nigeria. I think, I've become a pan-African, willy-nilly.
So, friends, I am migrating! Hope you don't abandon me. Vergiss mich nicht!
Yours brother in-blog,
Chielo Zona

A Swamp Full Of Hyenas [Book Review]

2009-10-31T17:23:00.000-07:00

Ikhide Ikheloa is one of the good, really good reviewers out there. He discusses one of the books I thought every Nigerian/African should read, Swamp Full of Dollars, by Michael Peel. An excellent review. Swamp Full of Dollars is what I may call the Nigerian Cry, the Beloved Country. ENJOY

Nollywood in peril

2009-10-31T17:11:00.000-07:00

Niyi Ige appears to liken what Dora Akunyilu does to the Nigerian image to what is happening in the Nollywood art (art?) scene. Deodorize, deodorize the the putrefying body. Oh, oh, I might have gone too far here. Please, read Niyi's words and judge for yourself. And remember to forgive me if I really went too far in my characterization. Here you go:

"In order not to mislead anyone, I must begin with a confession, I have no fondness for Nollywood or perhaps more accurately I do not understand the phenomenon.

The thin scripts, wildly implausible plots, non-existent production values and the determinedly stilted dialogue leave me somewhat mystified as to its potent appeal to vast swathes of the Nigerian public and further afield.

I am consistently confounded when I catch acquaintances whose cultural and aesthetic bonafides I was prepared to vouch for watching Africa Magic on the sly while a stack of ‘home videos’ lurk surreptitiously in the corner."
ENJOY

Africa's elite and the Western media

2009-10-29T16:15:00.000-07:00

I thought you might want to read this little piece of mine just published by the Pambazuka guys.

This is how they summed my attempts to capture the current mood of the African mind.
"Responding to intellectuals' efforts to repair the downtrodden image of African people, Chielo Zona Eze urges us to recognise that we have 'moved beyond the world shaped by the 19th century ideas of the African'. Stressing that he sees little probability of Nigeria's difficulties coming to an end anytime soon, the author asks us to consider a 'change of heart that begins with a radical rejection of the thought that the West is only interested in grubbing in the African compost'."

It would be interesting to see what you think of the essay. ENJOY.

2009-10-24T18:26:00.000-07:00

Rotimi Fasan serves us with another delectable dish - my other favorite reviewer, Ikhide Ikheloa, would say, scrumptious. Yes, that's his word.
Okay, I was saying that Fasan's review of Lindsay Barrett's collection of poems makes me wanna go get my own copy of the collection. Beautiful. Here are part of his review:

"Much of what Barrett has to say in his poetry comes by way of metaphors, many times veiled and oblique. The corollary of this is that the symbolisms of the poems in A Memory of Rivers tend to blunt the sharp edge of their aggrieved, if somewhat, mild advocacy. The anger of the poet is controlled, does not boil over and has the assuring ring of wisdom. This is a major achievement of Barrett's- the ability to weave words into images, make them say the unsayable and to disagree without being disagreeable. It is what makes A Memory of Rivers a worthy effort in spite of the apparent monotony of the images projected and the language employed."

I can imagine using Fasan's reviews as lesson materials for students of craft.
ENJOY

King hung by her own subject

2009-10-23T06:52:00.000-07:00

"Nigeria has flaws, but Lord help you if you criticize that country"
Maureen Isaacson recently interviewed Karin King-Aribisala. King-Aribisala has interesting things to say about Nigeria. Is this an eye-opener, or do her words confirm what all of us already know but feel weak to confront.
ENJOY!

My hero: Muhtar Bakare

2009-10-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

You know that a country's literature is growing when some names begin to sound nearly as important as works produced. These names become cultural figures without whom the discourse wouldn't be complete. But this is indeed what the whole thing is all about: creating a discourse, a national discourse, culture. Muhtar Bakare, in the eyes of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, has become an indispensable mosaic in the African cultural discourse. Here is her homage. ENJOY!

A poet's love game - Rotimi Fasan

2009-10-19T08:31:00.000-07:00

Rotimi Fasan believes that Ahmed Maiwada has got a deep talent for poetry. Perhaps Maiwada's generation might not yet understand him owing in large part, to his experimentations.
Here's Rotimi Fasan's judgment:
"Being misunderstood (especially in the notoriously subjective field of poetry) is a burden this poet must for now bear as a traveller on the not-so-well-beaten path of avant-gardist poetry. With time and better familiarity, his poetic experimentations will meet with more appreciative readers."
I love Fasan's delicate touch. This is what good reviewers do. Mature readers see the truth in between the lines. ENJOY!

Lindsay Barrett's statement on literature prize

2009-10-16T17:12:00.000-07:00

Perhaps you already know much about the farce called NLNG literature prize, what is supposed to be Nigerian national literature prize. Hahaha! A prize from which Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Sefi Atta, Chris Abani, Helon Habila and others are already excluded by mere chance of their having left Nigeria in search of a better place for the flourishing of their talents. Oh, well, the judges of the works submitted came to the concludion that the shortlisted works weren't good enough for any prize.
Oh, well, I'm sorry I'm commenting here even though it's not my intention to do so. I wanted to draw your attention to a beautiful essay by Lindsay Barrett: ENJOY!

Oil, Politics and Violence

2009-10-15T15:43:00.000-07:00

I guess it was George Santayana who said that those ignorant of history are bound to repeat its mistakes. Those of us born between the Nigerian independence and the first military coup, those of us who went through the horrors of the Nigerian civil war, are still trying to figure out why we, Nigerians, are the way we are. What has happened to Nigeria? Why hasn't it realized its enormous potential? Will it ever realize that?
Max Siollun has an explanation. His book,Oil, Politics and Violence, seems to add yet another mosaic in the complex tapestry of Nigerian history.
I am sincerely interested in this book. I, for one, belong to the above described generation, the generation traumatized by war and the attendant diseases.
Max Siollun is kind enough to pull together some of the reviews of his book HERE! Enjoy.

Nollywood and the Stifling of the Nigerian Mind

2009-10-05T18:58:00.000-07:00

I can't remember whether I posted a link to this beautiful essay I read weeks ago.
Please pardon if I have, but given the recent debate going on among many Nigerians about Nollywood and the(mis)representation of Nigeria, I thought you might like to read it.
ENJOY!

Nollywood Exposed

2009-10-05T18:48:00.000-07:00

In the past few months some hard thinkers in Nigeria have contended that Nollywood has achieved in a few years what the colonial masters couldn't achieve in decades of their enterprise in Africa: reduce the African brain to a miserable heap of sponge, the African mind to nothing but a whimsical lot!
There are hot debates going on in several Nigerian internet listserves about the recent book documentation published by Chris Abani and co.
Take a look and stay tuned, friends. ENJOY if you can.

Two books on my coffee table

2009-10-04T08:51:00.000-07:00

This review makes me wanna go grab these books. The review is succinct, sharp; it is a teaser. Ikhide is good.
ENJOY!

E.C. Osondu’s “Waiting”

2009-10-03T18:31:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed Nnorom Azuonye's review of "Waiting," the prize-winning short story by EC Osondu. Azuonye's judgment: "For a piece of prose the economy of words in Waiting is almost like what one would expect of poetry. In this story, Osondu displays a matured storytelling skill, a keen sense of setting and an astute ear for dialogue. Beautiful."
Oh yes, I love beautiful things.
ENJOY.

A Swamp Full Of Dollars

2009-09-27T19:12:00.000-07:00

I know this is not a work by a Nigerian writer. It's all about Nigeria, though. Michael Peel's book, A Swamp Full of Dollars, systematically peels off (is this by chance or design?) the layers of self-deceit in which Nigeria has clothed itself all the while. If I see this guy, I bet I gonna punch him (lightly, friendly) in the face because he did what I have been planning to do: he went to our own Niger Delta and witnessed the extent of Nigeria's collective decay there. Peel exposes a lot about us Nigerians. Bravo, bro.

by the way this is the REVIEW!

The Trial of Robert Mugabe A review of Chielo Zona Eze’s new novel Dobrota Pucherova

2009-09-21T11:15:00.000-07:00

Dobrota Pucherova believes that The Trial of Robert Mugabe can contribute to Zimbabwe's "collective healing." I don't know about that. It would be nice, though. I think she is an informed reader. What appeals to me in her review of this small book is her understanding of its literary and philosophical world. Her analysis could be informative when she gives reasons for her observations.
ENJOY

Book Review: The Trial of Robert Mugabe by Chielo Zona Eze

2009-09-20T08:38:00.000-07:00

Liam Sullivan says of this book: "This novel is not going to cheer you up but it offers important insight into the state of the world."

ENJOY

The Making of Habila’s 'Waiting For An Angel' - A Review

2009-09-15T15:36:00.000-07:00

Isaac Attah Ogezi thinks that Helon Habila's much acclaimed novel, Waiting for An Angel, isn't indeed a novel, but a string of loosely connected short stories. He may have a point here. What I love, though, is his painstaking analysis of the "novel" and his recognition of the novelist as a conscientious writer. I am sure that if Habila reads this piece he will take one or two helpful hints. It's great that the young and younger generation of Nigerian intellectuals are beginning to take seriously the job of engaging with ideas and with excellence. Isaac Atta Ogezi, to me, has got more up his sleeve.
ENJOY

Welding worlds with words: Globetrotter & Hitler's Children

2009-09-14T11:58:00.000-07:00

Uzor Maxin Uzoatu loves Amatoritsero Ede's latest offering, Globetrotter and Hitler's Children. "Amatoritsero Ede has travelled the continents carrying his native Nigeria along like a hunchback; his heady career including a spell as a Hindu monk with the Hare Krishna sect."
What a beautiful expression, one that underlines Uzoatu's poetic soul. Oh, well, Uzoatu is not one to celebrate himself unduly. He let us know that on the strength of this collection, "Amatoritsero Ede deserves celebration."
I look forward to more of his reviews and to having my copy of Ede's work.
Enjoy

In search of our own voice

2009-09-13T08:10:00.000-07:00

Ikhide Ikheloa has this to say about the role of literature and writers in Nigeria.
"Wherever we are, we should turn Nigeria into one great theatre that fosters audience participation. Instead, I detect an unnerving disconnect; even more troubling, sometimes this disconnect is worn as a badge of courage.

It is not too late for us to find our voices. I propose that more than ever, now is the time for Nigerian writers to marshal their formidable gifts to speak up against the mayhem that is unfolding in Nigeria as we speak."

I really love this even though some purists might argue that literature should not meddle with politics or even with everyday life. But I love how Ikhide repackages Sartre's core ideas in his seminal essay, which now bears the title of a book, What is Literature?
Good job, Ikhide.
Friends, ENJOY

The Trial of Robert Mugabe

2009-09-12T20:20:00.000-07:00

And by the way, my novel, to be published on September 15, has garnered some reviews. Ikhide Ikheloa, most of whose reviews I have always read with relish, doesn't seem to love the book. He qualifies it as "Eurocentric" and considers the trial as having taken place in a "kangaroo court," largely because only Mugabe was tried. He thinks that the God in the trial is white. I wish he was!
Well, read his REVIEW.
You might also place your order by Amazon.

On Black Sisters' Street

2009-09-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted anything on my blog. I went to one of the most interior part of Nigeria, where I stayed for four weeks and half with my dear mother. There in that lovely village there is no electricity and no telephone connection. My connected to the world was minimal.
I'm back to the US.

Now, here are some of the things going on around the Nigerian literary globe. Chika Unigwe's brilliant novel, On Black Sister's Street, has been out for a while now. I forgot to announce it. I chanced on a very good review by Bernadine Evaristo, who sees the novel as "important and accomplished."
ENJOY

419: Coming to you by chance

2009-06-08T06:44:00.000-07:00

In this much more concise review that deservedly ignores America and its Nigerian diasporians, Ikhide Ikheloa, once again showcases his deep understanding of literature as a work of art, something that needs to be consumed much in the same way you consume a steaming goat-meat pepper soup. I love this review of Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani's novel. Here you go.

You don’t have to swim across the Atlantic

2009-06-07T11:11:00.000-07:00

Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani dishes out words of encouragement and advice to Nigerian writers at home. Adaobi is really humorous, and her intelligence shines through every one of her sentences. Some readers though, might find her humor a bit mordant, especially her reference to growing hairs in certain ways. She could have left people to their tastes, I think.
Oh, well, here is her insightful piece. ENJOY!

Helene Oyeyemi Interview

2009-05-25T16:20:00.000-07:00

Helene Oyeyemi has now published her third novel; she seems to have now established a niche in the macabre genre. Anyway, this is an interested interview granted to Ben Machell.
ENJOY

Nollywood, Nolly what?

2009-05-25T10:10:00.001-07:00

Please take time to read if you love the Nigerian mind.

In a deep, soul-searching essay, Eddie Iroh provides an analysis of Nigerian home-video production, otherwise known as Nigerian film industry, or Nollywood. The problem with Nollywood, says Eddie Iroh, is not quit different from that of Nigeria: the love of mediocrity, living in illusion of grandeur because of the failure to compare oneself with the best in the world; the refusal to aim for excellence.
I so love this essay that I posting a link in every blog that I have a control over.
ENJOY!

Jude Dibia - An exciting interview

2009-05-23T11:53:00.000-07:00

At the European Association for Commonwealth Language and Literature conference held in Venice in March, 2008, I recommended Jude Dibia's Walking With Shadows to a French professor colleague of mine, interested in Gay/Lesbian stories in Nigeria. I hadn't read the book then (haven't done it even now - shame). But I was highly fascinated by the fact that somebody plucked the courage to write about that very issue in Nigeria. Kudos, Kudos. I stumbled upon this exciting interview by the author while I was searching for his novel on Amazon. Very deep thought. I am in awe.
Read the interview and order the book. ENJOY

Endurance tests: Aminatta Forna finds melancholy and disappointment in Adichie's short stories

2009-05-18T07:40:00.000-07:00

Aminatta Forna thinks that Adichie's short story collection is not as brilliant as her novel. I remember that Forna has some issues with Petina Gappah's collection as well. Interesting. Something is going on here. I am however compelled to read Forna's own work.
Anyway, here is her review. ENJOY!

I Do Not Come To You By Chance

2009-05-16T13:01:00.000-07:00

Written by Ikhide R. Ikheloa
I Do Not Come to You by Chance
by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani
Publisher: Hyperion
416pp

This is an interesting review, I should actually say review-essay, of a book whose author I have already fallen in love with. Boy, hope this doesn't get me into trouble. But believe me, I read Tricia Adaobi Nwaubani's interview on African Writing Online and fell for her. She's got a strong, independent mind. And then adding my favorite reviewer's adulation of her work, my, oh my, I'm dying to get hold of the book.

By the way, read the whole review HERE.

Tales of Freedom by Ben Okri: review

2009-05-07T16:34:00.000-07:00

Another review of Ben Okri's latest, Tales of Freedom. Lucy Daniel seems to believe that Okri is becoming way too "magicky," too dreamy and very little to do with reality.
Well ENJOY

The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

2009-05-03T19:32:00.000-07:00

Lindsay Duguid thinks that some of Adichie's stories lack the brilliance of her novels. She suspects that some of the characters appear stereotypical. Oh, well, here is Lindsay in her own words. ENJOY!

The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Review

2009-05-03T19:10:00.000-07:00

Jane Shilling finds Adichie's collection, The Thing Around Your Neck, compelling. She things that the only complaint is that some of the stories are so strong you want them to keep going. I like that.
Well, enjoy Shilling's review.

Small Talk: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

2009-05-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

I just chanced on this mini-interview given by Adichie. There isn't really anything new for those of us who've been following her closely - stalking her literally.
But well, I just remembered a line by John Keats: A thing of beauty is a joy for ever!
Enjoy

Nothing around their feet

2009-05-02T07:33:00.000-07:00

Tolu Ogunlesi has a great review of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's newest offering, The Thing Around Your Neck.
Tolu, like many Naija men, have fallen for Chimamanda. I swear he loves her - and who doesn't? Well, here is part of what he has to say.
"These are also stories that push the boundaries and surprise at every turn; stories of ordinary humans living (mostly) ordinary lives of quiet desperation and responding in ways that surprise them and us. There is a satisfying absence of melodrama and “odd world” surprises in them."

I like Tolu. We're sure to hear much about him in the next years. Well, read the review and see what I'm talking about. ENJOY

Introducing the stoku: Jay Parini struggles with Ben Okri's folk tales

2009-04-29T05:31:00.000-07:00

Ben Okri has come out with a new book of tales, Tales of Freedom, and Jay Parini doesn't seem to like it. But he has quite some good words for Okri for which I admire him.
As for me, the more I hear of or read about Ben Okri the more I think of him as belonging to some mythical worlds and ages that have little to do with me. I remember reading Dangerous Love and wanting to meet Okri in person and give him a warm handshake and have him autograph my copy. Incidents at the Shrine was also very good; I could relate to the world created there given that it is realistic enough. The Famished Road, I have been told, is good though it was there that Okri began to lose me. All this magical realism thing! Then it appeared that the more Okri wrote the more his world, his characters behave as if on hallucinogen. God help us!
Anyway enjoy Parini's review.

Story time with Toni Kan

2009-04-15T19:22:00.000-07:00

Book: Nights of the Creaking Bed

Author: Toni Kan

Publisher: Cassava Republic Press. Page count: 166pp
Reviewer: Isabella E.C. Akinseye

A good review of a potentially engaging collection of short stories.
Here is a foretaste: Nights of the Creaking Bed is like poetry; Toni Kan uses the minimum amount of words to tell all 14 stories with just the right amount of detail that you, the reader, feel that you were right there with the characters.

The collection of stories opens with the eponymous story ‘Nights of the Creaking Bed'. From the first line: "My mother was a kept woman," the tone of the piece is set. We go on to hear about this mother who has been ‘f***** somebody's husband'.

Sounds cool, doesn't it?

I like Tony Kan's spirit. He has a lot to offer.

Here is the full review:

Adichie's The Thing Around Your Neck

2009-04-10T07:23:00.000-07:00

This is perhaps the first review of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's collection of short stories. It was reviewed among other collections, including Petina Gappah's An Elegy for Easterly.
I don't really like collective reviews. You just have to dig deeper into the mix in order to get to the book you want to know much about. Is this a statement about the state of short stories in our age? I don't know. There are, however, some glaring lines about our own Adichie and Gappah. ENJOY.

Chaos and Catharsis: A Review of Eko o Nii Baje

2009-04-05T10:35:00.000-07:00

Chaos and Catharsis: A Review of Eko o Nii Baje

By

E. E. Sule

Eko o Nii Baje: a Collection of Short Stories on the Challenges, the Fun and the Excitement of Living in a Megacity. Nelson Publishers, 2008. Pp. 163.

Eko o Nii Baje is a collection of shorts stories, in the words of the publisher, on the challenges, the fun and the excitement of living in a megacity, Lagos. It is a 163-page book containing nine short stories of varied lengths and disparate themes, inviting the reader for a closer look at the sprawling Nigerian city originally called Eko. Each narrative gives us an angle of Lagos which is at once familiar and strange, peculiar and general, awaking us to the gritty realities of the Nigerian condition.

With this book, and the recently published Lagos of the Poets edited by Odia Ofeimun, Lagos continues to be imprinted on the literary scene as the most dramatised city in literary writing in Nigeria. From Cyprian Ekwensi to Buchi Emecheta, from Maik Nwosu to Sefi Ata, Lagos continues to play the role of setting for actions and diction that are peculiarly Nigerian, fashioning a space that is valid for a theorisation of the engaging response of Nigerian writers to our turbulent history of nationhood and democratisation. In an interview with me, Maik Nwosu, whose metaphoric exploration of Lagos surpasses that of any of his contemporaries, says, "For me, Lagos is a place and a metaphor. Lagos is an intense spellbinding city, my favourite city in the world. It is rich in colour, in drama and, of course, chaos. It is the colours and chaos of Lagos that Eko o Nii Baje presents in the refreshing tones and tenors of nine young Nigerian writers.

Let me lead you inside the book. Ifeoma Chinwubaâ's 10, Downey Street opens the collection. Set in Ebute Meta, in a building the narrator refers to as "ramshackle thing (1), it is the story of Emeka, a young banker, and his father, Papa Emeka, a pensioner, who visits his son. The central drama of the story unfolds with Papa Emeka's visit and Emeka's sexual affair with Iyabo, one of the Lagos girls eager to live with men as a way of survival. Emeka goes to work, unusually, on a Saturday morning only to return shortly and find his father in a sexual intercourse with his girlfriend. Emeka is mad at both his father and his girlfriend, and gives the former a hot pursuit. Chinwuba infuses a lot of actions in "10, Downey Street", injects pretty good humour in the actions, and lets her language flows with startling euphemisms that belly the physical rots of Ebute Meta and the human frailties of men condemned to an overcrowded neighbourhood.

Narrated from the first-person point of view, like most of the stories in the collection, "A Date with Area Boys," by Felix Abrahams Obi, is indeed an unforgettable encounter with the notorious area boys of Lagos, not only for Chima, the main character in the story, but also for the reader. Through a series of actions, starting from Chimaâ's house to the venue of his interview and back to his house, Obi effortlessly recreates the horrendous activities of the area boys in pre-Fashola Lagos. Chima, having performed well in the interview and won the attractive job, has to free himself from the violence of the bad boys, announced by a gruffly voice: "Kilon selee, abi you no get respect?" (42). A self-professed born-again Christian, Chima has to shelve the golden rule of turning the other cheek in order to reach his mother with his appointment letter and life. Seen as a trope, his fight with the area boys is a life-long battle that he, and indeed everyone, has to enact in order to become successful in life.

Deploying the journey motif, Spencer Okoroafor, in his story, "Human Tsunami," tells a story of a young man, Peter, who travels from his hometown to Lagos with a post-secondary school ambition. Even when he lands in Lagos, in spite of its bristling chaos, Peter's conviction, as Okoroafor puts it, is "that Lagos was, indeed, the city of gold" (49). Through Peter's naivety and gullibility, an irony unfolds, leaving both Peter and the reader stunned at the manner in which Lagos and, indeed, Nigeria kills the ambitions of her youngsters. Okoroafor's major theme interfaces with the subject matter of Paul Olorunmota's story simply entitled "Lagos!" in which we encounter a first-timer in Lagos through whose sensibility we experience the indignities of life in the slum area of Lagos.

Chinyere Obi-Obasi's "Mirage", like Chinwuba's, is a story of infidelity, but from a marital perspective. The narrator-persona, a young lady, assaults a Lagos girl dating her husband by throwing a stool at her. The victim, terribly hit, goes into a coma, gets resuscitated in a hospital and apologises to her attacker. In fact, it is the day she walks into Madam's house to confess and seek forgiveness that she is assaulted. At the end of the story there is that disturbing sense of regret and forgiveness on the part of Madam who sees her husband as a man of "everything in skirts" (99) and the ubiquitous Lagos girls as home-destroyers. Obi-Obasi's cathartic ending brings the women together as victims of the blatant phallus-figure dominating a patriarchal society.

In his own story, "Visa to Heaven", Patrick Tagbo Oguejiofor recreates vividly the obsession of the poor with Pentecostalism as a way not only of consoling themselves in a society bedevilled by social infamies, but also as a means of hoodwinking unsuspecting gospellers. Oguejiofor's emphasis is that life in the slum side of Lagos can push one to indulge in such whimsical ventures as the fantasies of heavenly riches amidst earthly rots. A jobless Ephraim walks into a Pentecostal church of solutions only to realise that the spiritual bravado of the church leaders is simply a medium of aggrandisement, as it is in our churches today, where the congregation becomes poorer while the pastors (and their high-sounding aliases) become richer. Oguejiofor ends his story in a way that poignantly interrogates the validity of the so-called foreign religions in supporting Africans to live a good life.

Interestingly, the nine stories in Eko o Nii Baje are about the struggles of the poor in a large city devoid of a good plan and leadership; about a people groping for hope in vain, relapsing now and then into a circle of squalor and despair. Tolu Ogunlesi's "The Terrorist who almost Drowned a City" and Obinna Nwachukwu's "Patients of Mesmer" further dramatise the decay and psychic failure that are associated with large cities in Africa. The Lagos of these writers is a city without scruples, a city that gives nothing to its inhabitants except hardship and violence; it is a Lagos offered to us in its dehumanising garbs so that we may rethink the essence of a home, a city, and life in Nigeria.

Each story, from what I have said so far, is worth appearing in this important collection. But it does not mean that the stories are artistically great. Indeed, the artistic flaws in the stories in this collection have further confirmed my long-held conviction that literary expression, a result of proper apprenticeship in techniques and tropes, eludes many so-called writers in our age. In all the stories, I cannot find any quotable expression, weighty with wisdom; I cannot see a language working beyond actions; I cannot find those alluring words that would open doors into the unsaid. It is good for a creative writer to have a nice storyline running, but the language chosen by the writer, and his/her exploration of its elasticity, is the incandescent forte of the creative writer, the very essence of what makes something a living work of art, not what Matthew Arnold calls literature in a hurry i.e. a mere composition.

Really, some of the writers here have stories, but the stories are askew if critically examined. Chinwuba's story, which could have been the best, begins well, like her Waiting for Maria: action-packed, tolerantly descriptive, and humorous. You are faced with serious issues: squalid environment, a rapacious landlord, jobless gossips, an oppressive pension system, lust and immorality, etc. Then suddenly the story turns melodramatic with actions that are stranger than fiction. Even if it happens in real life (which should not be a yardstick for intelligent fiction), the action of Emeka running after his biological father in a hot and dangerous pursuit, as Chinwuba depicts, because he finds her with a girl he picks from a street in Lagos, kills the story. Other stories, such as Olorunmota's "Lagos!" lack focus, are haphazard in nature, and give the sense that the writer is simply pressed to say something about Lagos. This, I guess, is the usual weakness of a themed collection in which either the editors fail to do a thorough job or they just want to publish anything. My conviction, however, is that, even though the best of story writers in Nigeria are not featured in the collection, the flaws are symptomatic of a general cancer gnawing at the soul of literary writing in Nigeria today.

In spite of the flaws Eko o Nii Baje is unique in its thematic direction because, more than any single work of fiction, it historicises the terrible mess Lagos became in the years of military oppression and lawlessness. It also historicises the cannibal response of our self-made leaders to the Nigerian condition. Today, the governor of Lagos State, going by the reports we hear, is trying hard to rescue Lagos, one of the most captivating cities in Africa. If and when Lagos is rescued, we will need these writers' Lagos to tell the story of the past.

A river of anthems

2009-04-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

Book: Gather My Blood Rivers Of Song

Author: Remi Raji

Reviewer: Tade Ipadeola

I start by saying that I tend to be shy of poetry. One of the reasons is that it tends to be arcane. There is however, no doubt that when you chance on a well-wrought basket of words, your blood is set boiling. Remi Raji and Tade Ipadeola know how to weave words. So when one reviews the other's work and gives it a high mark, I'm tempted to agree with their world. I look forward to reading Remi Raji's Gather My Blood Rivers of Song.
But I like the aperitif served here by our own Tade. Here you go.

And Why Uwem Akpan Didn't Disappoint

2009-04-04T07:34:00.000-07:00

A critical dialogue seemed to have developed between our own Ikhide and Lisa J Long on Uwem Akpan's collection, Say You're One of Them. Remember, Ikhide argued persuasively that Akpan, while having all good intentions for Africa, while (well, he's a Jesuit priest) hoping and dreaming that Africa would take its human rights seriously, seemed to have taken his missionary instincts rather too far in works of literature. To be honest, I swallowed Ikhide's review hook, line and sinker (I love this cliche). But you must have observed that I tend to accept his opinions on books. He knows what he's talking about. So does Lisa Long in a subtle counter-review. Ha, ha, I love this. This is exactly what African literature needs. A kind of soft gloved punches and counter punches. This explains why her editor draws attention to her piece by beginning with a conjunction, and. There's a lot in this conjunction, friends. Did she deliver? Did she save Akpan from excess misericordia? Make your judgment! And Why Uwem Akpan Didn't Disappoint

Brutality seen through children' eyes -FLORENCE SIPALLA

2009-03-22T08:55:00.000-07:00

Another take on Uwem Akpa's collection of short stories. A sympathetic review.

This anthology is a compelling read, bringing to the fore the plight of children who are usually the victims of conflict and other injustices such as child trafficking. The stories are set in five countries: Kenya, Rwanda, Gabon, Ethiopia and the author's homeland, Nigeria. As we travel these countries through the narration, adults who put children at risk in times of conflict are indicted" - Florence Sipalla.
ENJOY

Remembering Ekwensi's Spirit

2009-03-14T07:14:00.000-07:00

I am not particularly hot on Cyprian Ekwensi, but I love this homage to him by Ikhide R. Ikheloa. It begins with these beautiful two lines: "Deep in America's grinding labour mines, my memories hear my childhood chiming the Angelus. I pause to luxuriate in the coming pleasure of tugging at the camphor smell of mama's wrapper."

There are other great lines sown in between. Lots of treats. So, good luck in your Easter egg hunt. HERE!!!

Say You're One of Them - Isobel Dixon

2009-03-12T18:15:00.000-07:00

This one seems a bit late, but well, it helps. It is a beautiful review by Isobel Dixon.

Enjoy it here.

Say You're One of Them - Alyssa McDonald

2009-03-12T08:07:00.000-07:00

Have you ever imagined a Catholic priest describing a sex scene in a work of fiction? It's surely like handling a hot potato. Many Nigerian commentators, including one reviewer I admire so much, you guess it, Ikhide, suggest that our own Uwem Akpan must have encountered such difficulty while writing his stories - Say You're One of Them. Even Helon Habila thinks that the title is a bit odd. I don't know.
Well, I was fishing for reviews of Nigerian writing in world news outlets and chanced on this one by Alyssa McDonald. It starts thus: "All the stories in Uwem Akpan's debut collection focus on the lives of African children, and all are bleak."
This doesn't sound promising, does it? Well, I invite you to read the whole review. I warn you, it's short. HERE YOU GO!

Silent Waters

2009-03-01T17:40:00.000-08:00

Book: Silent Waters
Author: Okey Nwamadi
Reviewer: Ando Yeva

This looks like a beautiful review of a potentially bad book. I love the review; I am yet to read the book. Okay, friends, enjoy the good writing.

Many voices, one story

2009-02-28T06:30:00.000-08:00

Yet another one by our master reviewer, Ikhide Ikheloa. He takes a beautiful vivisection of Uwem Akpan's Say You're One of Them, and again he delivers.
You better read the whole thing HERE.
A treat.

In the name of our sisters: Everything Good Will Come

2009-02-24T06:09:00.000-08:00

This is another scoop from Ikhide's prodigious mind. I remember doing a review of Sefi Atta's novel, Everything Good Will Come. I don't know exactly where it is published, but well, who cares? My review is not as beautiful as this one here. I think I'm one of the earliest admirers of Everything Good Will Come. Interested in the depth of ideas and ethical issues that literary works embody, I was instantly pulled in by the issues that abound in Everything. Ikhide's review touched on some of those issues, which I incidentally explored in one of my literary/philosophical essays published in Quest: An African journal of philosophy. So, friends, please enjoy Ikhide's review.

The Activist Dies in Tanure Ojaide’s Dreams

2009-02-21T16:52:00.000-08:00

Ikhide R. Ikheloa (Nnamdi) is one of the few reviewers of world literatures whose words I take as seriously as I do mine - when inspired. I have been following his numerous reviews of Nigerian writings on some websites and each time I read his review I come away fulfilled. You know, it is the kind of feeling I used to have after attending a Holy Mass with a good sermon held by an enlightened, philosophically sound and socially conscious priest. Now you have rightfully guessed that I have a religious soul. Oh, yeah, sometimes something stirs deep within and I think I'm merely part of something larger than NOW.
Oh, well, if Ikhide were a priest, I would go to his church to hear his sermons.
So, after hearing (actually reading) one of his superb reviews titled, "The Activist Dies in Tanure Ojaide's Dream," I quickly ordered Ojaide's book. Lo and behold everything Ikhide said about this book was confirmed by my own reading.
Okay, here is Oga Ikhide in his own words. Read him, if you are a patriotic, literature-loving Nigerian, you'll surely sing praises for our dear Naija full of talents. Here is the review. Please enjoy. Prove me wrong, please.

Call For Posts and Links

2009-02-14T17:23:00.000-08:00

This is a very new blog, set up to seek out and promote any aspect of Nigerian creative writings. You are invited to send any review on any published work in print. I would appreciate if you could as well link me to any any published comment anywhere. Again, the goal is to advertise and help writers earn their deserved recognition.
Don't be afraid to criticize a work. Every work gains by being talked about regardless of the tone of the discourse.

All the best
Chielozona Eze