Naija Stories: Of Tears and Kisses, Heroes and Villains

In the introduction to this anthology of short stories by contemporary Nigerian writers, the editors make it clear that they intend to avoid the clich%C3%A9s of African literature. "Most of us have only seen zebras in the zoo," they write. Selected from contributions to the Naija Stories Web site, the stories in this anthology certainly eschew many of the expectations of African literature, but, unfortunately, they do little to build any new or exciting literature in its place. Many of the stories demonstrate some of the common pitfalls of inexperienced writers: poor pacing, didactic moralizing, and an inability to differentiate between story and anecdote. Ironically, the strongest stories in the collection%E2%80%94"Visiting Admiral John Bull," about a young woman interviewing her uncle, a leader in the Liberation Army of the Niger Delta, and "What Theophilus Did," in which the author teases out the conflicts between Christianity and tribal spirituality%E2%80%94are the tales most interested in African culture and history. While the intentions behind this anthology are certainly admirable, the results are lackluster.