Of This Our Country: Acclaimed Nigerian writers on the home, identity and culture they know

by HarperCollins Publishers

Overview

To define Nigeria is to tell a half-truth. Many have tried, but most have concluded that it is impossible to capture the true scope and significance of Africa’s most populous nation through words or images.

And yet here, through personal essays from 24 of its writers, a more accurate picture comes into view: one that details the realities and contradictions of patriotism, examines the role of class and privilege in Nigerian society, juxtaposes inherited tradition with the diasporic experience and explores the power of storytelling and its intrinsic link to Nigeria’s history.

Within these pages, acclaimed and award-winning writers share memories and experiences of Nigeria that can be found nowhere else, bringing to the fore a country whose influence can be found everywhere.

Powerful, lyrical and entirely unforgettable, OF THIS OUR COUNTRY weaves together a living portrait of Nigeria, one that is as beautiful as it is complex.

With essays from: Nels Abbey, Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀, Yomi Adegoke, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Oyinkan Akande, Ike Anya, Sefi Atta, Bolu Babalola, J K Chukwu, Abi Daré, Inua Ellams
Chịkọdịlị Emelụmadụ, Caleb Femi, Helon Habila, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, Anietie Isong, Okey Ndibe, Chigozie Obioma, Irenosen Okojie, Cheluchi Onyemelukwe, Lola Shoneyin, Umar Turaki, Chika Unigwe and Hafsa Zayyan.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780008469269
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	02/01/2022
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	520,857
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.20(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction ix

Clarion Calls Ayòbámi Adébáyò 1

Home History Caleb Femi 11

Father's Land Umar Turaki 19

Of Country and Reverie Irenosen Okojie 29

A Brief History of Suya. Inua Ellams 37

Coming to Lagos Helon Habila 49

Still Becoming Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 61

Elephants and Giraffes Oyinkan Akande 73

Against Enough J K Chukwu 83

Life is a Marketplace Chikodili Emelumadu 93

Rites of Passage Anietie Isong 103

Until We Meet Again Hafsa Zayyan 113

Nostalgia is an Extreme Sport Lola Shoneyin 123

Amaechina Chika Unigwe 133

One Season, Many Decades, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 145

War and Peace Okey Ndibe 157

A Banner Without Stain Ike Anya 169

Pride and Punishment Chigozie Obioma 183

Contradictions Bolu Babalola 193

Nulli Secundus Nels Abbey 205

#RepresentationMatters: The Oppressor in the Mirror 219

Yomi Adegoke

Education as Saviour Cheluchi Onyemelukwe 231

Renewal Sefi Atta 243

You Are Not Going Back Abi Daré 255

About the Authors 267

Acknowledgements 273

Editorial Reviews

‘The read I never thought I needed. As a fellow Nigerian, I learnt so much about our culture – both the good and the bad, but maybe more importantly, our potential … moving, funny at times, insightful and so relatable. It's a necessary read’ Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, author of Yinka Where is Your Huzband

‘This collection of 24 personal essays did what it needed to do! The voices included are as eclectic and diverse as the country itself, and you can go from laughing to wanting to weep in a matter of moments as you’re taken through the ups and downs of a nation – and national identity – that is still scarred by colonialism, civil war and corruption but strides towards the future with arrogance, endless optimism and sheer bloody-mindedness. To be Nigerian is a complex and contradictory thing, but so many of these essays put into words things I feel in the fibre of my gut but haven’t quite worked out the language for’ Jendella Benson, author of Hope and Glory

From the Publisher