The Road to the Country
By Chigozie Obioma
Hogarth, June 4, 2024
A university student in Lagos tries to save his brother—and himself—amid the chaos of Nigeria’s civil war in this sweeping, heartracing, mystical novel by the two-time Booker Prize finalist and “the heir to Chinua Achebe” (New York Times)
“Chigozie Obioma is that rare thing: an original. His world is a mix of the real and the folkloric, and his writing sounds like no one else’s.” —Wall Street Journal
At first the vision is grainy—like something seen through wet glass. But slowly it clears, and there appears the figure of a man.
When Kunle’s younger brother disappears as his country explodes in civil war, Kunle must set out on an impossible rescue mission. Set in Nigeria in the late 1960s, The Road to the Country is the epic story of a shy, bookish student haunted by long-held guilt and shame who must go to war to free himself. Kunle’s search for his brother becomes a journey of atonement that will see Kunle conscripted into the breakaway Biafran army and forced to fight a war he hardly understands, all while navigating the prophecies of a local Seer, he who marks Kunle as an Abami Eda—one who will die and return to life.
The story of a young man seeking redemption in a country on fire, Chigozie Obioma’s novel is an odyssey of brotherhood, love, and unimaginable courage set during one of the most devastating conflicts in the history of Africa. Intertwining myth and realism into a thrilling, inspired, and emotionally powerful novel, The Road to the Country is Chigozie Obioma’s masterpiece.
Selected Praise
“This powerfully evocative and intimate book is unarguably Obioma’s finest. Through subtle, piercing, and gripping language, he renders those seemingly simple but unforgettable moments when our lives intertwine with history, anchoring you to the pages until the end. The Road to the Country will remind you that our existence is the histories of past, present, and the future—and the importance of understanding that. This is among the best books I’ve read in a while and is certainly destined to be a classic.”—Ishmael Beah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Long Way Gone
“A spectacular blend of realism and mysticism, The Road to the Country is Chigozie Obioma at his finest. He is a novelist in a league of his own.”—Imbolo Mbue, New York Times bestselling author of Behold the Dreamers
“Chigozie Obioma has proven his mastery of craft in this sweeping, brilliant, and stunning novel. The Road to the Country is an eloquent, beautifully rendered study on time and place and the history that changed a nation. His is a gorgeous prose, and the storytelling one expects from a gifted writer. . . . A truly unforgettable read.”—Nicole Dennis-Benn, award-winning author of Here Comes the Sun and Patsy
About the Author
Chigozie Obioma was born in Akure, Nigeria. His two novels, The Fishermen and An Orchestra of Minorities, were both shortlisted for the Booker Prize. His novels have won the inaugural FT/Oppenheimer Award for Fiction, the NAACP Image Award, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and have been nominated for many others. He was named one of Foreign Policy’s 100 Leading Global Thinkers. He is a professor of creative writing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and divides his time between the U.S. and Nigeria. Together, his two novels have been translated into 30 languages.