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What Happened on Thursday? A Nigerian Civil War Story
by Ayo Oyeku
Age Range: 6-8
“The war begins on Thursday.
The reporter on the radio tells me so.
I have bread for breakfast.
My father drives me to school in his white car.”
Narrated by a young child, What Happened on Thursday? follows the life of a family during the Nigerian Civil War. As the build-up to war begins the everyday calm is shattered and soon there is no more bread and the child is unable to leave the house. Then one night the family are woken by a thunderous sound, their house is in ruins, smoke fills the air and they must flee with a few belongings. Their arduous journey by car, truck, bike and on foot, while constantly under siege, is frightening and exhausting. Finally, they reach safety and settle in a camp for displaced persons – “All the children look like me. Lack of food has taken our health. Lack of meals has taken our breath. But we are alive.”
Nigerian award-winning author Ayo Oyeku’s poetic text, told from a child’s perspective, sensitively deals with the tragedy and human cost of war. Through all the darkest despair and fear it is the love of the child’s family which shines through despite their lives being changed forever.
Oyeku was inspired to write the story from the ‘gory details’ he heard growing up about the Nigerian Civil War between the government of Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, (a state in the southeastern region populated primarily by the Igbo ethnic group), which began on Thursday 6 July 1967 and ended on Thursday 15 January 1970. With another more current war going on in northeast Nigeria since 2009 with Boko Haram insurgents Oyeku comments at the back of the book in ‘A Note From the Author’ “I wrote this book to keep a good account of history and to push for peace in my country and throughout the world.”
The rich colour artwork by illustrator Lydia Mba provides exquisite character portrayals, and detailed double-page images of the family’s flight and eventual arrival at a place of safety.
What Happened on Thursday? is a powerful portrayal of one family’s experience of the horrors of war which is sadly so relevant in today’s world.






























































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































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