About book There Was A Country: A Personal History Of Biafra (2012)
Part of me hopes that this account is biased and inaccurate, because I don't want the events to be true, I want the Igbo tribe and Biafra people to have provoked the horrible way they were treated so I can feel less sickened by what I learned happened.This book is an account of the failed Biafran secession against the corrupt Nigerian government. The outside world encourages corruption, and mostly turns a blind eye to atrocities. I kept being reminded of the holocaust. The writing can be a bit dry and there are many unfamiliar names and places which can get a bit confusing.I would recommend this book to students of Nigerian history, and to people who have haves conscience and strong stomach. I had never heard of Biafra before I read this, and it just seems wrong that knowledge about the events should fade away as if it never happened. I found this book incredibly interesting. I've loved all of his book so far, and was not disappointed. It's definitely heavy in terms content, not something you can just flip through, but his writing makes it a very accessible subject even to someone who knew little about the politics of Nigeria previously.I have to admit, as a British student, it was a particularly difficult read in terms of realising how much we as a nation had to do with this atrocity. That said, this is all the more reason why more people should be reading it, as we seem to have a very rose tinted view of Britain history and our involvement in international affairs.Really worth reading!
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The depth of detail is staggering. The depth of passion and purity of prose is Achebe.
—maj
I didn't find this particular account of Biafra to be either engrossing or revealing.
—Mirie
