Introduction
There has been a rising interest in children’s literature in recent times. This surge in the demand for and appreciation of children’s literature is not unrelated to the recognition of the profound impact literature has on the development of young minds. Educators and parents alike have come to acknowledge that literature serves as an effective tool for education, entertainment and propagation of societal values in children. Exposure to good literature also helps to arouse the curiosity of the young readers and encourage creativity.
Perhaps in response to the surge in demand, there has been a proliferation of children’s literature, with accompanying concerns about authors producing books without recourse to appropriateness of theme, language and other aspects of style. These are areas that ought to be given keen attention bearing in mind that exposure to inappropriate reading materials may inadvertently lead to confusion and distress in the young readers while also spreading or reinforcing stereotypes about certain groups of people. Commenting on the ideals of children’s literature, Jack Zippes posits:
…a book for children should aim to render a clear and interesting picture of an epoch or topic with all the contradictions and should speak to children’s problems truthfully so that they can learn to master these problems and develop their own identity. The communicative function of the language and images should help the child improve his or her learning ability and creative potentials. (qtd. in Isaac Shittu Ayodeji 325)
Zippes’ view on what should constitute children’s literature is similar to Mabel Segun’s admonition to writers of children’s literature thus:
A good children’s writer must also adapt the contents and language of her writing to the child’s age, experience and background. She must understand a child’s psychology so that her story does not ring false. Good children’s literature arouses a child’s imagination and extends his horizon, it gives him a knowledge of the past in relation to the present and imbues him with those ideals and values that are so necessary for national development. Work ethics, selflessness, loving relationships, acceptance of responsibility are a few of the values which can be taught through literature, not in a didactic, off-putting manner but with subtlety so that children can be mobilized towards national and international development. (32)
It can be deduced from the quotations above that children’s literature is a delicate field that requires good knowledge of the workings of the minds of children, the background of the target audience as well as good narrative skills. With this in mind, one shall now undertake an analysis of Adaeze Nwadike’s Nwammiri to see the extent to which it embodies these ideals.
Synopsis of Nwammiri
Nwadike’s Nwammiri revolves around an eleven year old girl, Chikanma Amadi, whose love for the river earns her the name, Nwammiri. Kanma, as she is fondly called, lives with her parents and siblings in Aninta, a small village in the eastern part of Nigeria. She enjoys school and derives pleasure from watching and reading beside River Osu. The river is the major source of water and livelihood for the people who are mainly fishers.
A cloak of sadness falls over the community when illegal refiners wreak havoc, leading to pollution of the River Osu and displacement of the entire village. Ahead of the impending movement of her family to Owerri to live with her uncle, Rufus, in a very uncomfortable arrangement, Kanma is determined to pay her beloved River Osu a farewell visit. This obsession of Kanma with the river becomes the salvation of the community. She runs into the oil thieves at the river and, in a moment of intense suspense, tries to hide from them but is eventually captured. In spite of her pleas that she has seen and heard nothing, Kanma is taken away by the men. She keeps screaming ad struggling till, out of fear that she may cause their boat to capsize, she is struck on the head and falls unconscious in the boat.
Kanma, the heroine, displays uncommon courage and wisdom when she regains consciousness but remains still so as not to be noticed. This way, she is able to listen to the conversations of the vandals and she discovers that Johnbull, the man who is believed to ensure security in Aninta, and some men working with him are responsible for the calamity that has befallen the village. Their illegal mining activities are responsible for the pollution of River Osu.
Kanma crawls out of the boat unnoticed by the illegal refiners and finds her way to a tarred road after several falls and stops to gather her strength. On her way, Kanma again displays exceptional resourcefulness worth emulating by every child when she ties a small piece of the fabric earlier used by the vandals to tie her hands to trees on her path. This she does to help her find her way back when she gets to safety and needs to lead security officers there. She is found at the roadside by some travelers who, after listening to her story, take her to a police station. She leads the security officers to the scene following the trail she had left and the criminals are arrested.
The story ends on a happy note as Kanma is celebrated and given a scholarship. The River Osu is also drained for new water to flow into it, giving the community a new lease of life.
Theme and Style in Adaeze Nwadike’s Nwammiri
This section of the review focuses on the themes, characterization, use of language, realistic setting and other narrative devices in Nwadike’s Nwammiri. Particular attention will be paid to how these aspects of the story enable the young reader relate to the text.
The greatest attraction of this book for me is the choice and handling of theme. The preoccupation of the work with environmental degradation, a pertinent topic that was given scant attention by writers of children’s literature until recently, is a clear indication of the author’s belief that to keep our environment safe, children who are the leaders of tomorrow must be given adequate orientation on human activities and how they affect the ecosystem. By portraying the importance of River Osu to the survival of Aninta and the devastating effects its pollution has on the livelihood and the very survival of the entire community, the author succeeds in conveying the urgency of the situation to the reader. However, Nwadike does not present a hopeless situation which would leave the child reader in distress. She presents a ray of hope for the revival of the damaged environment if all members of the society, including children, commit themselves to efforts to preserve and restore the environment. The message at the end of the work is clear: That the environment is of utmost importance and we must do whatever we can to preserve it. Nwadike’s Nwammiri is therefore a timely and bold step to educate children about the dire consequences of environmental pollution.
Besides the central theme, Nwammiri treats the theme of education, highlighting its significance and the need for its acquisition by any child who desires a bright future. The decision of Kanma’s parents not to give Chisimdi out in marriage anymore after things turn around for the better but to let her further her education and the request by Kanma that a standard secondary school be built in Aninta are pointers to the fact that education is important in the life of every child. This is also an appropriate message for children. Nwadike deserves commendation for seamlessly exploring these sensitive themes in a thoughtful and age-appropriate manner.
One of the ideals of children’s literature as identified by Segun is that it instills in the reader values that are necessary for national development. Some of these values include responsibility, selflessness, truthfulness, obedience, honesty among others. These ideals are often portrayed using various techniques, one of which is contrasting characters. This is a situation where one sees deviant characters suffering the consequences of their actions while good characters are applauded and rewarded. The moralistic inclination of the author is unmistakable as one sees children who engage in deviant behaviour, like Ugoo and his friends, being punished while the exemplary Kanma is uplifted, The fate of evil doers is further portrayed through the character of Johnbull and his cohorts who are all arrested by the police. This sends a clear warning to children that evil doers will not go unpunished while those who do good will be handsomely rewarded as exemplified in the character of Kanma.
One of the things that stand out in the narrative style in Nwammiri is that the author is not over-moralistic – an obsession that renders many children’s books boring and monotonous. Although the moral inclination of the author is not in doubt, she does not allow this to over-shadow the beauty and reality of the story. For example, Kanma’s attraction to her classmate, Ndu, reveals an aspect of growing up that is often demonized and swept under the carpet by most writers of children’s books. It is believed that children of about eleven years know nothing about love and should not in any way be involved in emotional relationships. Yet, the subtle presentation of the attraction between Kanma and her classmate, Ndu, shows that in reality, this is not the case.
Nwadike’s character portrayal reflects good knowledge of the workings of the minds of the children. She lets the reader see through the eyes of the young characters – notably Kanma and her friend, Oma, both of whom are eleven years old, and Ugoo, Kanma’s brother who is thirteen, the innocence, naivety, inquisitiveness and longing for adventure that characterize childhood. This is truly what it means to view the world through the mind of a child.
Equally important is use of pictures and illustrations in Nwammiri. The importance of pictures in children’s literature cannot be overemphasized as children are attracted to and fascinated by beautiful and colourful pictures. Very often, the pictures in a children’s story book expand the message to the reader, helping them to experience more vividly the intended emotions. In Nwammiri, pictures are deployed deliberately and appropriately on various pages. The book has a total number of six well drawn pictures that are colourful and appealing to the eyes. Interestingly, they are progressive in nature. On page 13, a happy atmosphere is presented as traders engage in business at the bank of River Osu while a serene mood is visible in the picture on page 19 where Kanma is seen reading by the river. On page 52, Kanma is happily engrossed in a discussion with her friend, Oma. The next picture on page 78 reflects the change in Aninta. The Osu River is poisoned and the picture shows a dismal image of dead fish floating on the surface of the water. Lastly, the sixth picture, on page 92 shows Johnbull and his men taking Kanma away in a boat. There is no gainsaying that these pictures contrite greatly to the beauty and engaging nature of the work.
Appropriateness of language is another important aspect of children’s literature. The language of a chidren’s book should be simple and decent, avoiding obscenities. This is because the minds of children are very delicate and impressionable, and any exposure to corrupt language in terms of obscenity and even grammatical errors will cast a dark shadow on their speech and writing ability Unfortunately, once children are negatively influenced, it becomes very difficult to rectify the problem. This is another aspect that Adaeze has handled well in Nwammiri. A close examination of the language used in the text shows that it is written in good English with mostly simple sentences used to ease the understanding of young readers.
Though simple, the language of the text is however not simplistic as the author employs figures of speech such as metaphor and personification among others to enrich the story while also enhancing the reader’s ability to use creative expressions. In chapter five, to convey the intensity of the effect the voice of the headmistress has on the entire school, the author uses personification thus: “Her voice sprinkled silence on the teachers and pupils” (33). There is also the use of imagery by the author to create vivid pictures in the minds of readers. For example, to show the extent of Kanma’s uneasiness when she thinks she has made the blacklist, the author says, “…dews of shame perspired on her skin and rested beneath her nose” (43) while on page 32, there is the metaphor of plantain trees turning into giant monsters.
Nwadike has also used some words in her native language, Igbo, such as Nwammiri, Ijeuwa, enuaki, and ogene, among others, reflecting the cultural setting of the work and adding some spice to the language of the story. Although a glossary is not provided to explain the words at the end, skilled readers can tell their meanings from the context of usage while some are translated briefly in the body of the work.
Conclusion
On the whole, Adaeze’s Nwammiri is a truly fascinating work of literature. The entire 108 pages and 15 chapters demonstrate the author’s narrative skill in in the way she handles the themes, the characters, the use of flowery language and other literary devices as well as the use of pictures make Nwammiri to stand out as a children’s book with the capacity to inculcate the desired values of honesty, discipline, humility, obedience, and social responsibility in the reader while also entertaining the reader and satisfying the inherent curiosity of the child on the chosen theme.
This is a book that every child should read. This is especially so for children living in Nigeria where oil exploration has led to massive degradation of the environment and displacement of whole communities. This reality, though harsh, is presented through a captivating story line, masterful use of language, vibrant illustrations, heartrending suspense and engaging characters, thus sparking a sense of wonder and curiosity rather than fear and despair in young minds.
Works Cited
Ayodeji, Isaac Ayodeji. “Children’s Literature and Cultural Literacy in Nigeria: A Critical Appraisal.” Topical Issues in Literacy, Language and Development in Nigeria, edited by Obiajulu, Emejulu, Louisa, Uwatt, and Arua, Arua. International Development in Africa Committee and Reading Association of Nigeria, 2008, pp. 319-333.
Emenyonu, Ernest. “Nurturing the Cradle: Chinua Achebe’s Fiction for Children.” Goatskin Bags and Wisdom: New Critical Perspectives on African Literature, edited by Ernest Emenyonu, Trenton: Africa World Press, Inc., 2000, pp. 239-253.
Segun, Mabel. “Children’s Literature in Africa: Problems and Prospects,” Children and Literature in Africa, edited by Chidi Ikonne, Oko and Onwudinjo. Calabar: Heinemann Educational Books (Nigeria), Plc., 1992, pp. 24-42.
BRIEF BIO
Regina AchieNege is an independent editor, prose writer and poet. She was second runner up in poetry in the 2021 Association of Nigerian Authors literary awards. She is the vice chairperson of ANA, Benue State Chapter. Her major published works include Ad Finem Fidelis: A History of Mount Carmel College Makurdi from 1979 till Date (2017), Dog Tales for Children (2017)and Let Me Die Another Day (Poetry). Regina has also co-edited several books including Season of Laurels and Thrills (2021)and Ace Booksquare Literary Reviews (2022). Her poetry, articles and book reviews are published in several journals, anthologies and dailies. She is a doctoral student in the Department of English, Benue State University, Makurdi.