book review

An image containing emmanuel ifeajuna, aguiyi ironsi, tafawa balewa, nnamdi azikiwe, harold wilson, emeka ojukwu, chukwuma kaduna nzeogwu and the book John de St. Jorre’s The Brothers’ War: Biafra and Nigeria

 A British War Journalist’s Account of How January 15 Changed Nigeria

History, politics /

Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi, who had been alerted by the wife of one of the murdered officers, ran to the police headquarters in his car to plot a counter-offensive. According to the book, Ironsi spent most of the morning of January 15 in the Lagos police headquarters trying to consolidate his position. Sixty years later, no one can say where a general confronted with a similar situation might turn for refuge and reinforcement. However, most would likely agree that it certainly would not be the police headquarters in Lagos or Abuja

 A British War Journalist’s Account of How January 15 Changed Nigeria Read More »

an image of the book, A Midlifer’s Guide to Content Creation and Profit by Azu Ishiekwene

Thinking about midlife

Human Interest /

An accomplished writer in his younger days, with several published books to his name, Nengi asked me if it was still possible for him to receive a reward or, to put it bluntly, earn money for his labours of earlier years, several of them either out of print or forgotten by a generation riveted on Kindle. Has he not been left behind by the new tech wave of e-books and digital migration?

Thinking about midlife Read More »

an image of the Nigerian map with the book 'The Harold Smith Story'

How to Drink from a Poisoned Cup: Harold Smith and the Nigerian Story

Economy, History /

Okotie-Eboh, whose first appointment as Labour Minister was “like a child presented with the keys of a sweet shop,” sold government assets and pocketed the money without fear of a reprimand because he was as serviceable to British political interests as he was to his own. The British handed over the reins of power to a significant number of notorious politicians who, over the years, would make a fine art of notoriety

How to Drink from a Poisoned Cup: Harold Smith and the Nigerian Story Read More »

An image of Jonathan Power and his book, When Are You Going to Get a Proper Job?

When Are You Going to Get a Proper Job?

Lifestyle /

Power is a passionate husband and a doting father but a woefully unlucky lover. If you discount the tragic end of the Barnes in Paul Murray’s The Bee Sting, in which Dickie Barnes is a principal character, Power’s account of his love and marriage life reminds you of how complications and unresolved issues in a marriage can undo even the best intentions, leaving emotional scars that won’t go away, even when it’s all over

When Are You Going to Get a Proper Job? Read More »

an image of General Ibrahim Babangida and his book - A Journey in Service

Babangida’s Long Journey to Sorry

History, politics /

Those too young or indebted to Babangida to see clearly may believe what they choose. But it would be defamatory of reptiles to call the man a chameleon. When General Yakubu Gowon said in the Foreword that being a soldier and a politician was a virtue in Babangida, the old man was being economical with the truth. As Marshal Davout, one of Napoleon’s most outstanding soldiers, said, the best soldiers abhor politics. They take a professional stand… Instead of the five-letter word – sorry – Babangida tried vainly to use 111,281 words to exorcise the demon within. He failed. In his book On Writing, Stephen King, one of my favourite authors, said honesty is necessary for good writing. Babangida’s pseudo-memoir fails that test

Babangida’s Long Journey to Sorry Read More »

an image of Azu and Sam Amuka with Azu's new book 'Writing for Media and Monetising It'

What’s in a Book? You’ll Never Know, Until…

Education /

You don’t know I’m called Daddy DJ?” he joked in response to my puzzled look. Sam Amuka, I know. Uncle Sam, I know. Who doesn’t? He is the Jimmy Breslin of Nigeria’s journalism. Writing about Breslin, who died seven years ago at 88, Tom Wolfe described him as, “The greatest columnist of my era.” And that, from Wolfe, a master of the craft in his own right, says a lot.

What’s in a Book? You’ll Never Know, Until… Read More »

A picture of Femi Adesina and his new book titled 'Working with Buhari: Reflections of A Special Adviser, Media and Publicity (2015-2023)'

Reflections on Adesina’s Work with Buhari

politics /

If military victory alone could guarantee peace, we might not have had the Second World War. The unfair terms of the Treaty of Versailles, for example, which included territorial annexation, demilitarisation and heavy war reparations, pushed Germany to the brink. It created conditions that led to the rise of Hitler. In its blind and desperate pursuit of the last “aggressive German” in particular, for example, the Allied forces sowed the seed that led to the rise of exactly what they hated the most: the Weimar Republic, and finally, Nazi Germany

Reflections on Adesina’s Work with Buhari Read More »

Scroll to Top