Wole Soyinka has written so many novels and a few poems, you may have known about some of them and there are still some you don’t know about. That is because you have not come across them or read them. In this article, we are going to discuss five top books written by a renowned Nigerian poet and playwright, so if you don’t know some of the books that are written by Professor Wole Soyinka, then read this article to find out about them.
About Wole Soyinka
Who is Wole Soyinka? He is a renowned poet, playwright, actor, and novelist, from Nigeria. He is from the Yoruba tribe in the southern part of Nigeria. Wole Soyinka was born in Abeokuta on 13 July 1934, in southern Nigeria.
He graduated from the elite secondary school, Government College of Ibadan. After his secondary education, he proceeded to the University of Ibadan (formerly known as University College Ibadan). After he obtained a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom, in 1957, in 1973, he was awarded an Honorary degree of D. Litt. in 1973 at the same university.
Top 5 Books By Wole Soyinka
- The Trials of Brother Jero (1960)
- Death and the King’s Horseman (1975)
- The Lion and the Jewel (1959)
- The Interpreters (1966)
- Ake the Years of Childhood (1984)
The Trials of Brother Jero (1960)
The Trials of Brother Jero is one of the most popular books written by Wole Soyinka, the Lauraet Prize winner of Nigeria and Africa. The book was first published in (1960). It was produced at Mellanby Hall, University College, Ibadan, that was the first publication of the book.
The book is a play that consists of two short plays in one that was re-released as a collection in 1973. The two books in one are:
- The Trials of Brother Jero was first published in 1964
- And Jero’s Metamorphosis was published in 1966, two years later.
The book is a light satiric comedy that describes and discusses the religious hypocrisy of a particular preacher. The water sees Brother Jero as a rogue for manipulating his followers who are hungry for money, power, and a rise in social status.
The Trials of Brother Jero is a story that is told about a preacher, by name Brother Jero, who is a cunning beach diviner who believes his church to be a business, because of that he uses superstition to woo his customers (penitents) to his church.
Death and the King’s Horseman (1975)
Death and the King’s Horseman is another famous book that was written by Professor Wole Soyinka and published in 1975. The book was written about an event that took place in Yoruba land, Oyo State, in 1946. The play revolves around the death of the king of Oyo, the king’s chief horseman (Elesin Oba), his son, Olunde, who is studying medicine in England; and Simon Pilkings, the colonial district officer.
According to the tradition of the kingdom, it is expected that the king’s horseman dies alongside him by committing suicide. When the king died, Elesin was supposed to die by suicide to accompany his ruler to heaven, according to the demand of the law and customs of the people.
It was when the European government in Nigeria prevented the King’s horseman from dying with his king that set the climax of the story. Elesin’s son arrives home, from England, the moment Pilkings learns of the ritual.
Both the trial of Brother Jero and Jero’s metamorphoses are set towards one goal, which is to satirize Christianity and religious hypocrisy, and the kind of devotion many converts have towards their spiritual leaders.
The Lion and the Jewel (1959)
The Lion and the Jewel is the third among the top 5 (five) books we are looking at in this piece. The book is a play, that was published in 1959.
The popular play, Lion and the Jewel was set in Ilujinle, a Yoruba village. In this play, the story is told of a man by the name of Baraka, who is one of the village’s viceroyalty chieftains. Baraka fought with Lakunle, a semi-literate Westernised teacher, making claims that he should be the one to marry Sidi, (the village belle). Baraka and Sidi are the ones that Wole Soyinka (writer) uses to refer to “lion” and “jewel” in the play.
“The Lion and the Jewel” is a three-act play written that brings modern and traditional elements of storytelling to bear. The writer also employs Yoruba song and dance, to drive home his message including comical and serious measures. The play’s characters are often used by the writer to create a moment of comic relief in the play.
The play revolves around three main characters Sidi, Lakunle, and Baro, who are in the battle of who marry Sidi and who will not.
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The Interpreters (1966)
The Interpreters is the number four book we are going to consider among the top five books written by Wole Soyinka. The Interpreters was published by the writer in 1966. It is one of the popular books written by Professor Wole Soyinka.
The story is set in Lagos Nigeria and around the University of Ibadan. Every line of the story took place during the post-independence of Nigeria in 1960 and the pre-civil war. It also took precious time to look at the shortcomings and pitbulls of each of the characters.
The story of the novel centers on five young Nigerians who have obtained formal education in the Western World and decided to return home after the nation’s independence.
The characters put all their effort into analyzing the prevalent corruption and pitfalls of the country and how it has affected the structure and the system of things in the country. This has forced them to take a stand as to which kind of Nigeria they need, either the old or a new Nigeria. Because of their experience, they are forced to do all they can to have a new face of the country Nigeria.
Ake the Years of Childhood (1984)
Ake the Years of Childhood was published in 1984. It is a story or an autobiographical story about the author’s (Wole Soyinka’s) childhood life and the event surrounding his childhood. The book account for the author’s childhood between about 1934 and 1945 which took place in a town in Nigeria known as Ake.
The entire story is a memory of the experience of the author’s childhood experience. They include his school days drama. When he was five, he was always crazy about band matches from his village to another village. He mixed a lot of the local Yoruba language and proverbs with English to bring his idea to bear.
It explains the character of his father who was a prototype of a local headmaster of an elementary school, who found joy in making a series of arguments. His mother on the other hand is a strict Christian mother, with a disciplinarian outlook. She does not spare her children a fair share of lashes whenever they are found wanting in their duties or behaviors.