Perhaps, just perhaps, going by the thematic thrust of the works the judges threw up in their evaluation of the 153 entries submitted for adjudication. Since the characters are all minors, these writers, or some of them, have subtly invoked the Child Rights Act in their works thereby serving notice to society about the urgent need to take its role in protecting children, as vulnerable members of society
NOT arts for arts’ sake, Pete! That seems to be the defining, creative ethos of the 11 longlisted writers who partied with their books last Saturday at MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.
Five years ago in 2019, Jude Idada won with his advocacy book Boom Boom on sickle cell anaemia that openly drummed it on the ears of intending couples to be sure of their genetic makeup before saying ‘I do’ at the marriage altar, no matter how love-begotten they may be. The sheer cruelty of subjecting an innocent child to the unrelenting pains of being a sickler or ‘warrior’, as sufferers are euphemistically referred to, as Idada is saying in his novel, does not make up for whatever love young and intending couples may lay claim to for having children with disorder in their blood. Needless to say his advocacy fetched him the handsome $100,000 prize money.
His would-be successor winner or winners would seem to have taken a cue from him individually among the 11 writers. Perhaps, just perhaps, going by the thematic thrust of the works the judges threw up in their evaluation of the 153 entries submitted for adjudication. Since the characters are all minors, these writers, or some of them, have subtly invoked the Child Rights Act in their works thereby serving notice to society about the urgent need to take its role in protecting children, as vulnerable members of society. Whose duty it is in government to enforce the Act to protect children from domestic and sexual violence, rape, and all forms of cruelty to children such as child labour? And what is the role of members of society to report such crimes against minors to the appropriate authority for action? It takes a village to raise a child, remember?
In The Road Does Not End by Olubunmi Familoni, Rilwan’s orphaned status does not shield him from going “under the thumb of his cruel aunt, Aunty Biliki, who thrusts him into the unforgiving world of street hawking,” as the synopsis says, concluding with an ominous caveat, “Will Rilwan’s resilience lead him to the life he yearns for, or will the streets claim his dreams?”
Clearly, Familoni’s advocacy is against domestic violence and child labour, as it exposes minors to the dangers lurking in the streets such as drug abuse, sexual violence, rape, kidnapping, compromised characters, etc, especially in the cities where all manners of crimes are rife. With Familoni’s socially conscious work cut it for the judges to award his work the prize? That’s left to be seen in a matter of weeks.
The Third Side of a Coin by Hyginus Ekwuazi also does not shy away from casting its gaze on two of Nigeria’s aberrant practices that make nationhood status for the country impossible to attain – ethnic jingoism and religious extremism. “Through him (Ethan, a boy of 8), the reader experiences the underlining religious and ethnic tensions in his family, community, and school environments; experiencing his unease, his internal struggles and his conflicts.”
How does a country set herself free from the cancerous virus of ethnic jingoism and religious bigotry to forge unity in diversity that its leaders mouth with careless ease yet fan the embers of these viruses for selfish gains? This is at the heart of Ekwuazi’s book. Is his unifying vision as seen through the eyes of Ethan be enough to get him the judges’ nod for the prize that may just be his retirement package as a university professor? That’s left to be seen soon enough.
Two books on the longlist are big on environmental protection and culture conversation. First is A Father’s Pride by Ndidi Chiazor-Enenmor, whose character, Urenna, after “Arriving in the city from her remote village is shocked at how fast her expectations of a beautiful life crumble. She encounters unpleasant experiences alien to her but is fuelled by the desire to rise above the tide and fulfil her late father’s wishes. Through many twists and turns, Urenna discovers her unique role as a custodian of her culture and a champion for the environment.”
The campaign for environmental sustainability is huge, and Chiazor-Enenmor’s book is spot on in its advocacy for the preservation of the environment. Urenna is indeed a climate change agent that’s at the heart of the conversation in local and international arenas. Surely, there’s something here for the judges to chew upon.
Not least in this socially conscious direction for environmental health is Risi Recycle, The Dustbin Girl by Temiloluwa Adeshina where “Risire Daniels popularly called the Dustbin Girl, fought through the deadly insurgence of the north that shattered her world, crumbled her hopes, and left her family dead. She saw the drama! She fought through the flashes of horror, hunger and poverty. She learned to live in a new world of lack and despondency, with other children she met in the Dustbin Village in Ajegunle.”
Indeed, Adeshina’s character has seen it all – insurgency war in the northeast and down south for yet some elusive reprieve and finally ending up in the dustbin as the only means of survival. The indictment of society cannot be more complete and even scarier than this for a child. The question becomes: what is society doing in all this long-drawn ordeal that befalls a minor in the midst of plenty? Has society become so insular that it callously abandons its young ones to suffer such dire fate? Well, the judges have their jury job cut out for them anyway. The world waits.
The Magic Jalabiya by Ayo Oyeku offers some redemption from the grim reality that most of the children in the 11 books face, as jalabiya becomes the magic carpet that teleports its heroes to “visit amazing places, make new friends across different tribes, and leap into the future — where hope, wonder and purpose bring meaning to their lives.”
Oyeku paints a redemptive, hoped-for, futuristic portrait for young ones as against the grim reality of their daily lives in a form of alternative fiction that ignores the present, but looks ahead in a vision flare. Indeed, it’s some sort of renewed hope mantra that keeps the dream alive even if an elusive one, but dream all the same. Will the judges vindicate Oyeku for his hoped-for, future eldorado? Just maybe.
Grandma and the Moon’s Hidden Secret by Jumoke Verissimo paints the portrait of loss and how a child deals with the sudden absence of a loved one, as “Àdùké comes home from school and can’t find Grandma anywhere! Àdùké doesn’t understand why Grandma can’t come back, but then her aunt Yímiká tells her a secret.” Support system for trauma, whether for loss of beloved ones or other forms is scarce, and Verissimo may just be advocating for institutional support that members of society can fall back on when hard pressed by the vagaries of life. This is what is taken for granted in saner societies. Will this cut it for Verissimo? Just maybe.
Village Boy by Anietie Usen continues on the strain of idyllic childhood, its sheer delights and nostalgic recollections in his “absorbing adventure into village life in southern Nigeria, especially AkwaCross States. For adults, it is a nostalgia to relish. For children and the younger generation, this is not just a breezy window to the 60s and 70s, but the veritable binoculars to trace the footsteps of their parents and grandparents, in the proverbial good old days.”
Will the ‘good old days’ ever be here again? Why did they even disappear? What management delinquency or crass mismanagement orchestrated the disappearance of the good old days? While Usen’s recollection is nostalgic, it’s at once advocating for good governance that should lead to a return of the good life that others take for granted in other countries. Would the current ‘japa’ syndrome happen if a slice of the ‘good old days’ were still here? And so in subtle ways, Usen lets us see through the eyes of a child a paradise lost and is calling out leaders who made the good old days a fit meal for recollections only instead of current lived reality.
Wish Maker by Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike’s character (Ebele) needs some sort of ‘supernatural’ intervention to make his Christmas wish come true, as his lived reality mirrors the starkness all around him, because “his widowed mother barely able to afford food and the harsh ridicule of his friends, he knows his wishes may never come true. When a strange man comes to town, the boy opens his heart and home reluctantly. In return, the stranger teaches him there is more to Christmas than just gifts…”
Should children suffer such excruciating longing and pain and pray for a stranger to come by before their innocent wishes could be met? What happens to the institutional structures that should make Ebele’s widowed mother be able to take care of his son’s needs? That’s at the heart of Wish Maker, a dig on failed leadership that leave the vast majority of the populace in abject penury amidst plenty that is appropriated for selfish interests by those who control the levers of power. Will the judges look in the way of this book and make Umezurike’s USD$100,000 wish come true?
Bode’s Birthday Party by Akanni Festus Olaniyi is a conscious campaign against drug addiction, as Bode becomes “a hero after delving in to help his older brother whose life was deteriorating under the grip of an addiction. He was met with challenges which he shared with us in this story about friendship, family and adventures.”
The negative impact of drug abuse on young people cannot be quantified, as it derails them from set goals. Olaniyi’s book becomes an advocacy tool to deal with the perils of drug addiction among young people. Is this what the judges are looking for? Perhaps, just perhaps…
Mighty Mite and Golden Jewel by Henry Akubuiro is another campaign tool that obviously advocates for inclusivity in social relations between abled and disabled members of society. Often enough, abled bodied people tend to look down on disabled people as if it’s a crime or the disabled are to blame for their situation.
And so “By depicting the hatred for disabled children both in school and social circles by others, the novel advocates for attitudinal change by all and sundry. Using the major characters, Chukwueze (a dwarf) and Nora (an albinoit) seeks to enlighten children and the public that many disabled children are born with genetic disorders, and not responsible for their predicaments”, but Akubuiro is challenging society to rethink its ways and enthusiastically embrace disabled people, because in them are gems being allowed to waste by not embracing them fully. And this for both government that should erect institutions of care and members of society that should embrace these vulnerable folks into their midst, as having rights and talents they too can deploy to contribute to society’s wellbeing.
The Children at the IDP Camp by Olatubosun Taofeek also frowns at the concept of a camp for internally displaced people in a country that has so much but whose commonwealth has been appropriated by a selfish few. “Danlami, through his generosity, becomes a beacon of hope for the children at the IDP camp” and shows government and philanthropic individuals the way to go to ameliorate the needless suffering of people in IDP camp, as “He offers solutions to their various challenges. His acts of kindness not only provide practical solutions but also instill hope and purpose in the lives of the children who have been largely abandoned by the world. Motivated by genuine concern for the welfare of the children at the IDP camp, Danlami develops a solution template for their long-standing issues.”
Danlami becomes the government in a scenario where government is an absentee father, having failed its citizens to care for their plight. This conscious advocacy is germaine at a time like this when authority seems not to know its mandate towards the people. But whether the judges will look favourably in Taofeek’s way is another matter, but suffice it to say that he has satisfactorily played up a black spot in his society that deserves urgent attention.
- https://thearthubng.com/advocacy-social-consciousness-lead-thematic-thrust-of-11-longlisted-books/
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