'(The writer) in whose company the prison walls fell down' - Nelson Mandela. After a long silence Achebe published in 1987 what many see as his greatest work - an acrid, frightening look at oil-boom Nigeria, a world of robberies, road blocks and intimidation in which those who are meant to be protecting a country's citizens are in reality supervising the looting.

2002-11-26 Achebe raises a number of issues in this story

This is an excellently told story of three friends who grow up to lead the state of Kangan. The story shifts narration between the main characters (the head of state, the minister of informationa ndthe head of the natioanl newspaper) and slowly gives the reader an impression of what post-colonial life is like in an African state of both developing ciites and incredicle rural poverty. Via the central characters, you learnn of the incredible influence that the English bourgeiose have had (an continue to have) on the logic and thinking of many African leaders as they continue to look to their immediate pasts (under colonial rule) for a guide as to how to rule. The story of these three friends really lets one feel that the post-colonial African state is a hugely complex issue. Despite all that you learn from the text, it never becomes didactic and is first and foremost an enjoyable read. This is the second Achebe novel I have read (the other being Things Fall Apart) and I thought this one was more accessible and more enjoyable.