Chinua Achebe

"What a treat! This biography of one of the world's most distinguished and honored writers is a welcome arrival. Achebe has done more than any other single person to draw international attention to the literature of the sub-Sahara, and he is well served by this study. The book details Achebe's life from his birth in 1930 to 1993, showing his growth as a novelist, poet, and critic. The author includes a good treatment of the firestorm that occurred after Achebe called Heart of Darkness a racist work; his work as a Biafran patriot during the aborted war of secession; and his encouragement of other African writers, primarily but not exclusively those from Nigeria, to show their work to the world. Indeed, to read this book is to be present at the beginning of the careers of such acclaimed writers as Ngugi (Ngugi) wa Thiongo, Wole Soyinka, and Christopher Okigbo. This rewarding study veers now and then toward hagiography (Ezenwa-Ohaeto is a former student), but that is not a serious flaw. Those wishing for a closer reading of the novels (which was clearly not the author's intent) should read Simon Gukandi's Reading Chinua Achebe (CH, May'92) or Chinua Achebe: A Celebration, edited by Kirsten Petersen and Anna Rutherford (1991). Every library should add Ezenwa-Ohaeto's book to its collection.May 1998"—P. W. Stine, Gordon College