Oil on Water
by Helon Habila
2020-12-30 07:40:16
âThe new generation of twenty-first-century African writers have now come of age. Without a doubt Habila is one of the best.ââEmmanuel Dongala In the oil-rich and environmentally devastated Nigerian Delta, the wife of a British oil exe...
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âThe new generation of twenty-first-century African writers have now come of age. Without a doubt Habila is one of the best.ââEmmanuel Dongala In the oil-rich and environmentally devastated Nigerian Delta, the wife of a British oil executive has been kidnapped. Two journalistsâa young upstart, Rufus, and a once-great, now disillusioned veteran, Zaqâare sent to find her. In a story rich with atmosphere and taut with suspense, Oil on Water explores the conflict between idealism and cynical disillusionment in a journey full of danger and unintended consequences. As Rufus and Zaq navigate polluted rivers flanked by exploded and dormant oil wells, in search of âthe white woman,â they must contend with the brutality of both government soldiers and militants. Assailed by irresolvable versions of the âtruthâ about the womanâs disappearance, dependent on the kindness of strangers of unknowable loyalties, their journalistic objectivity will prove unsustainable, but other values might yet salvage their human dignity.
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