The Road To The County by Chigozie Obioma

I read a review of this book that quoted Viet Thanh Nguyen (who recently had a book named as one of the best books of the 21st century by the New York Times) as saying, “All wars are fought twice. The first time on the battlefield, the second time in memory.” The Biafran conflict ignited in 1967, which was seven years after Nigerian independence from British colonial rule. The country was not built on historic boundaries that existed before the Europeans arrived, and the three largest ethnic groups are the Hausa, who make up 25% of the population; the Yoruba, who make up 21%; and the Igbo, who make up 18%. The war was fought between the Nigerian government and the secessionist state of Biafra, triggered by a declaration of independence by the Igbo-dominated region. Britain supported the government. However, news reports of starvation in Biafra, under blockade by the government, provoked public outrage. The war ended with the defeat of Biafra. By then up to 3 million people, mostly Biafrans, had died from starvation, disease and violence. That is the historical structure upon which this novel is written. It opens with a young student, Kunle, feeling responsible for the accident that crippled his younger brother Tunde, so he buries himself in his studies. On returning home from his studies, he discovers that Tunde has disappeared into the land now known as Biafra, where an armed conflict is going on. Kunle becomes obsessed with finding his estranged brother and bringing him back home. He is not a soldier, nor is he even truly aware of what he is undertaking and he is soon captured by rebel forces. Their commander, on learning that Kunle’s mother is an Igbo, instead of ordering his execution offers him the chance to fight. And fight he does. I am not much for novels that are largely about fighting, but this is a very good story that is well told.