In the Shadow of War

As part of the second generation of African writers producing literature in the languages of the continent’s colonizers, Okri’s work adds to the growing canon of African literature portraying the social, cultural, and political intricacies of post-colonial life in an African country. Okri’s family returned to their native Nigeria when Okri was six years old—right before the start of the civil war in 1967. As a child, he was not impervious to the atrocities of war: He explained, “The extraordinary impact of seeing dead bodies made me never stop asking why so much evil is possible. How can we become people we don't recognise [sic] overnight? How can we become monsters to ourselves?” (www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/books/ben-okri-novelist-as-dream-weaver-1.395947) The character of Omovo and his experiences in this story evoke these same questions, as the reader sees a young boy trying to make sense of the impossible questions one asks when witnessing war. Okri avoids directly naming any characters as Nigerian nationalists or Biafra secessionists—the point being that violence and suffering affect people regardless of their political affiliation and whether they have been labeled an ally or an enemy.

Ambiguity and confusion—markers of a child navigating harsh lessons of loyalty, truth, and morality—are thematic throughout the story.