By Oriyomi Anthony
Over four decades since its publication, Buchi Emecheta’s The Joys of Motherhood remains a renowned reference text on motherhood.
Through the lens of Nnu Ego, the book’s heroine, readers are unceremoniously introduced to the grim realities of what being a mother entails, disabusing them of any flowery illusions of a perfect and rewarding motherhood.
In the same vein, fatherhood, in all its contradictions, has been a focus of African writers. Books have explored different shades of fathers, from the committed to the abusive to the promiscuous.
To celebrate 2025 Father’s Day, I examine 6 Nigerian books that capture the complexity of fatherhood. Enjoy!
Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe)
In Achebe’s debut novel, we meet two central father figures: Unoka, the protagonist’s father, and Okonkwo, the protagonist. Where Unoka is lazy, weak, unambitious and poor, Okonkwo, contrastingly, is a strong, hardworking, ambitious and successful version of his father.
However, the same traits that helped Okonkwo triumph marred his children’s experience of his fatherhood and contributed to his eventual downfall. Both characters remain dominant tropes in fatherhood today.
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Purple Hibiscus (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
To the outsiders, the Achikes were a perfect example of what a family should be: a rich and pious father, a submissive and quiet mother, and two lovely children. Upon a closer look, a chilling picture of an egregiously abusive husband and father is unveiled. Purple Hibiscus, Adichie’s debut novel, shows that some fathers' definition of love is a selfish and damaging distortion of the term.
Everything Good Will Come (Sefi Atta)
The story follows the lives of Enitan and Sheri, two women who grew up in Lagos in the 1970s and 80s. Enitan’s father, at first glance, appeared to be the nurturing and protective father who wanted the best for his daughter. While his affection remained largely consistent, other actions showed his motives, like some other fathers, were/are not always altruistic.
Diaries of a Dead African (Chuma Nwokolo)
Written by one of Nigeria’s master satirists, the book is a merciless comedy that explores the life- threatening situations of Meme Jumai and his two sons – Abel and Calamatus. Meme Jumai bears a strong resemblance to Chinua Achebe’s Unoka in Things Fall Apart.
Although in his case, Meme Jumai suffered a serious string of bad luck almost simultaneously, which led to the unceremonious end of his five decades-plus existence. One, his wife left him and went away with the bulk of the previous year’s harvest. Secondly, he had to make do with just three tubers of yam to tide him till the next harvest, leaving him with no option but to beg, making him the brunt of fellow villagers’ cruel jokes. Three, the expected harvest turned out to be underwhelming, leading him to a drastic decision that terminated his life unexpectedly. Nwokolo’s portrayal of fatherhood through Meme Jumai is both sad and depressing. It shows a father who tried his best to cater for his family, but whom the stars just did not align. It also gives an insight into the silent struggles fathers carry beneath the facade of keeping it together.
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives (Lola Shoneyin)
The list would be incomplete without the philandering, greedy father whose only interest is a harem
full of wives and a football league of children. Lola Shoneyin pictured Baba Segi as the quintessential polygamous man, who believed he was the picture of male virility and whose only contribution to his children’s upbringing was his delinquent absence. Sadly, many Baba Segis continue to exist in society.
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Tomorrow I Become A Woman (Aiwanose Odafen)
Following in the footsteps of Eugene (Purple Hibiscus), Gozie Azubuike, in Tomorrow I Become a Woman, is the controlling husband-turned-abusive-husband-turned-manipulating and abusive father. Like almost all violent husbands, he started like a lamb who could not hurt a fly, but over time, he unravelled till his wife had to flee with their children. Odafen spent some time examining different husband-wife/father-children dynamics in her debut work, viewing them through lenses which were not all palatable but which reflected grim realities.
The above-listed texts reveal that fatherhood is complex, layered and that fathers are just as human as everyone else with their hopes, motivations, ambitions, faults and failings. So, while children continue to hope for perfect fathers, fathers should commit to becoming the best versions of themselves.
Happy Father’s Day!
