Nigeria Content Online

Debut novelist
Chimeka Garricks has given the first reading of his book, ‘Tomorrow
Died Yesterday’ at the Rainbow Book Club on Saturday, March 27.
Moderated by Amie Emmanuel-Georgewill, the event held at the Le
Meridian Hotel in Port Harcourt.

Garricks’ novel
tells the story of four friends who grew up under varying circumstances
in the oil-rich Niger Delta. It explores themes of love, kidnapping and
militancy as well as conspiracy and murder, using locations from the
fictional coastal town of Asiama to the bustling city of Port Harcourt.
Also examined is the role played by government, the oil giants in the
face of the people’s struggle for resource control and self
determination.

“I wanted to write
a love story,” said Chimeka when asked about the motivation behind
‘Tomorrow Died Yesterday’. The love story ended up being coloured by
the frustration felt by the author about the rise of militancy in the
Niger Delta struggle. The time of writing coincided with the exodus of
expatriates working in the petroleum industry from Port Harcourt.
According to Garricks, the story naturally evolved, imbibing all the
elements in his immediate environment.

“I’m a Port
Harcourt boy,” was Chimeka Garrick’s response to a question by Rainbow
Book Club founder, Koko Kalango, on his background. His answer, a
refrain from Duncan Mighty’s popular song of the same title, elicited
an appreciative applause from the book reading audience. The author
described himself as a lawyer by day, writer by night and football
fanatic at the weekend. An autograph session followed the well
atttended reading.

The Rainbow Book
Club (RBC) organises quarterly book readings for its members featuring
guest authors in Port Harcourt. Some of the of high profile authors who
have graced the readings include: Uwem Akpan, author of ‘Say You’re One
of Them’ and; Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani, author of ‘I Do Not Come to You
by Chance’, which won of the Commonwealth Prize for Best First Book
(Africa Region) in 2010.

The club has announced that its book-of-the-month for April is
‘Tenants of the House’ by Wale Okediran, former President of the
Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA); and former member of the Federal
House of Representatives, now running for the Senate. The date for the
RBC reading featuring Okediran will be announced in due course.