By Aaron Ukodie
Writers of fiction–story, drama or poetry—often set their works to solve, bring to light societal ills and challenges. That is what Anote Ajeluorou, Guardian Head of Politics, and once Art Editor, set his work Igho Goes to Farm to achieve.
At the 2019 CORA-Nigeria Prize for Literature Book Party, held at Muson Centre, at the weekend, Ajeluorou spoke on what motivated him to write the story.
He said he wrote the book because of his fascination for children literature, which came about as a result of his work as a journalist and a father of a young daughter, who is in school.
As a journalist, on the Art beat, writer and father, Ajelourou said he had interacted a lot with children literature, and has found out that most of them that are recommended for children, of between the ages of four and six, are not good enough. Some of them are poorly written and edited. So, he felt he could do something that could feel the gap.
In considering the theme for the book, Ajeluorou, was motivated to use the work to draw attention of parents, and perhaps teachers, to the danger and the effect, of not moderating, and not guiding, their children on the use of internet and social media.
Igho Goes to Farm, set in the writer’s village, is about Igho, who often took, at least, fifth position in her school’s exam, dropped to 15th, after he acquired an internet gadget and got distracted. As a result of this, his mother banished him to spend the long holiday with her aging parents, who still work their farms in the village. This was punishment for coming a distant 15th position in his recent exams.
Meanwhile, Igho’s two siblings will visit Disneyland in America with their parents. Luckily, Igho gets the company of his cousin, Onome who lives in Warri and together, they set out on a journey of the best fun of their young lives
It is not only Ajeluorou that is chasing the LNG N36 million prize money. Others that are contesting with him are Double ‘A’ for Adventure, written by young Anisa Daniel-Oniko, Boom Boom by Jude Idada, Ginaka’s Adventure by Nnenna Ochibe, She Calls Him Daddy by Oladele Medaiyese, Spurred Surprises, By Lami Adejoh Opawale, The Great Walls of Benin, by O T Begho, Obioma: A Girl’s Journey To Self-Discovery, by Nkiru Uzoh, Buried Beneath The Baobab Tree, by Adaobi Nwaubani and Mystery at Ebenezer Lodge, by Dunni Olatunde.
There of the eleven books will be shortlisted in September, and the winner, out of the three, will emerge in November 2019 to cart home the N36 million. The prize money for last year was N35.7 million.
The secretary General, Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), Toyin Akinosho speaking at the event said the LNG prize money was initiated because the LNG sees an opportunity for the creation of an entire economy around the book trade.
According to him, a full ecosystem of the book is still possible in spite of the age of twitter, saying: “We can have robust, publishing, book clubs, authors’ appearances to audiences to read everywhere from Okokomaiko to Maitama; bookshops in traditional markets, in shopping malls, online sales of ebooks and audiobooks, active proliferation of book blogs, book reviews everywhere, libraries in every corner from Ajangbadi to Kaura Namoda”.
The book party, Akinosho said is a way of ensuring that there is a robust audience engagement with the books that have been long listed for this award, adding that CORA believes in building the soft infrastructure of the book industry.
The Book Party was graced with scintillating traditional dances, drama and drumming by, mostly, children that tickled the audience and prepared them to listen to readings of sections of the 11 books on offer and fielding of questions by the writers.
