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Overview
Noo Saro-Wiwa was brought up in England, but every summer she was dragged back to visit her father in Nigeria—a country she viewed as an annoying parallel universe where she had to relinquish all her creature comforts and sense of individuality. After her father, activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, was killed there, she didn’t return for several years. Then she decided to come to terms with the country her father given his life for.
Traveling from the exuberant chaos of Lagos to the calm beauty of the eastern mountains; from the eccentricity of a Nigerian dog show to the decrepit kitsch of the Transwonderland Amusement Park, she explores Nigerian Christianity, delves into the country’s history of slavery, examines the corrupting effect of oil, and ponders the huge success of Nollywood.
She finds the country as exasperating as ever, and frequently despairs at the corruption and inefficiency she encounters. But she also discovers that it is far more beautiful and varied than she had ever imagined, with its captivating thick tropical rain forest and ancient palaces and monuments—and most engagingly and entertainingly, its unforgettable people.
“The author allows her love-hate relationship with Nigeria to flavor this thoughtful travel journal, lending it irony, wit and frankness.” —Kirkus Reviews
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781619020078 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Catapult |
| Publication date: | 08/21/2012 |
| Pages: | 320 |
| Sales rank: | 514,437 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.10(w) x 8.84(h) x 0.89(d) |
About the Author
Table of Contents
Prologue 1
Lagos
1 Centre of Excellence 11
2 Oil and People on Water 37
3 Total Formula for Victory Over the Hardships of Life 58
Ibadan
4 Under the Light of Fading Stars 84
5 Transwonderland 98
Abuja
6 In the Chop House 110
7 Spiderman, Rock Stars and Gigolos 126
Kano
8 Straddling Modernity's Kofar 140
Nguru and Yankari
9 Where are those Stupid Animals? 163
Jos
10 Hidden Legacies 182
Maiduguri and Sukur
11 Kingdom of Heaven 193
Calabar
12 Masquerade Mischief 206
Cross River State
13 Spiling Nature's Spoils 232
Benin
14 Behind the Mask 246
Port Harcourt
15 Tending the Backyard 270
Lagos
16 Truth and Reconciliation 297
Epilogue 306
Acknowledgements 310
Sources 311
Interviews
A Conversation with Noo Saro-Wiwa, Author of Looking for Transwonderland
How did your idea of the book evolve as you wrote it?
Initially I had wanted to explore Nigeria as a tourist and separate myself from the family stuff, but that was obviously impossible to achieve. I ended up adding more family anecdotes, so it became part memoir. I also expanded on Nigeria's history and cultural background more than intended, to give non-Nigerian readers some context.
What was your writing process like, converting your travel journal into a memoir?
I would write or record all my observations and conversations with people, then religiously transcribe and email them to myself every night so as not to lose them. I didn't start writing the book until I returned to England. As it is chronological non-fiction it was fairly easy to expand my notes into prose.
Each place I visited bore some significance or relation to my memories and family history, so it was quite easy to meld the memoir with the travel journal. The writing experience was emotionally gruelling, though. It dredged up some old memories, and there were a couple of nights when I dreamed about my late father and brother, which is rare for me, and somewhat draining.
Have you returned to Nigeria since finishing the book?
I'm attending a literary festival there this year, which will be my first visit since writing Transwonderland. Nigeria has changed quite a bit in the last five years, so I'm looking forward to going back.
How did you find weighing the relative "pros" and "cons" of Nigeria in terms of offering readers the most balanced and fair perspectives? Did you go into it with both sides in mind, or did you find yourself surprised at your reaction?
Presenting a balanced view isn't something I consciously felt I had to do. There are good sides and bad sides to any place, and as long as you keep your eyes and mind open it's impossible not to see both.
I anticipated the good and the bad, but there were things I unexpectedly disliked about Nigeria, as well as things I surprisingly liked - such as the indigenous culture, which I had previously been indifferent towards.
I should add that travel writing is a subjective genre. Transwonderland is about my trip and my feelings and biases (which I lay clearly on the table for the reader). It's not a "book about Nigeria" so much as a book about my personal experiences around the country. I think most readers recognise the difference.
What's next for you?
South Africa, hopefully. Years ago I wrote a book about my travels there, but I turned down a publishing deal for it. I'd like to revisit the country and write another book.
Who have you discovered lately?
I'm currently reading Chinua Achebe's There was A Country, a page-turning personal memoir of Nigeria's Biafran civil war. I recently stumbled across William Makepeace Thackeray's The Book of Snobs, a hilarious collection of essays about snobbery in Victorian England. I've also enjoyed Instead of a Book, a collection of correspondences between literary editor Diana Athill and her friend over a 30-year period. There's only one thing more interesting than an intelligent, adventurous person and that's an old, intelligent adventurous person - Athill and Achebe have lived long, rich lives.