At a time some authors are shying away from putting their books in hard copies due to the financial implications, preferring to go digital, it is somewhat abnormal for an author to unveil four books the same day.
But that was exactly what Obiorah Momife, a renowned poet did recently at the Alliance Francaise, in Old GRA Port Harcourt when he released his latest works. They include: Crosses: A collection of Christian Poems; The Other Side Of me, a collection of poems; In The Valley of Dreams (Short Stories) and Ife Di N’Oba, another collection of poems.
The collections are Christian poems that Momife uses to drive home some moral notes in a society that is at war with itself as capitalism and consumerism and the need to match their pace drive people further away from the truth.
Momife, who has shown uncommon consistency in pushing out his literary works operates in manner that portrays him immune to the day to day obstacles that deter most authors from forging ahead.
There appears to be a force driving his creative spirit and a deep resolve to ensure that readers benefit from it in a way that undermines the country’s current economic realities as a limiting barrier.
Why does he still publish under our current circumstances? “It’s like asking antelopes why they still make it downhill to the river, in the jungle, even when they are faced everytime with predators from the air, on land and even in the water, to drink water,” he says.
He adds: “I love writing poetry; it is one channel I have discovered that helps to empty my soul of its natural tension that builds up daily. Writing recreate a semblance of sanity in my world.
“Perhaps, it has become a passion that destiny has helped me accomplished on my path in life. One a baby is born, the next prayer is from the baby to walk. After writing and editing the obligation for a poet/next thing is to give it wings by publishing a book.”
Over the years, Momife and a host of authors have collaborated and succeeded in keeping the literary scene in Port Harcourt thriving. Whenever any of them has a book unveiling or reading for example, the members of that circle usually give a helping hands.
Although some of them reside outside Port Harcourt, even Rivers State, they always make it to the Garden City whenever the need arises.
They include Dr. Ebidenyefa Tarila-Nikade, author who is of the Spelling Bee Bayelsa; Uzo Nwamara, poet, playwright, storyteller, essayist, Madam Nyiedum Ufot of the Clover Hall International School Port Harcourt, and Chuma Ofor of the Olympus Book Club Woji Portharcourt an affiliate of the host association and Chì NDù EfóGò, poet, story teller who is of the African Culture Club Writers’ Series It was not a surprise to notice their involvement during Momife’s book unveiling under the supervision of Prof. Frank Ugiomoh, a retired lecturer at the University of Port Harcourt, and renowned sculptor and painter.
Ugiomoh described Momife’s works as colorful reflections of the hearts and the many untold stories it holds within its confinement. He also pointed out that Momife’s works cuts across the entire genres of active creative writing, and are multi-racial representation of every aspect of society and its daily constructs.
Prof. Ibiere Ken-Maduako, of the Department of English and Communication Arts, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, who reviewed one of the books: The Crosses, a collection of poems, described it as a moral compass that would benefit whoever that reads it. “The crosses signifies the salvation of a believer. It is a reflection of different people’s crosses.
Every man has his own cross. Every single poem in this book is talking about the individual’s crosses,” she says. A literary icon, Yibo Koko, the DG. Rivers State Tourism Agency and the director of the Seki Dance Initiative, who delivered the keynote address lauded Momife for his creativity and his ideology that reflects in his works.
Chì NDù EfóGò, poet, story teller who is of the African Culture Club Writers’ Series Woji Port Harcourt in analyzing Momife’s latest works believes that “the errors of yesterday can only serve as reminders for the future as humanity continues to evolve from the past to the present.”
He also sees ‘literature as the wind in history that continuously blows without seizing, just as he ‘believes that the great shift in education and pursuit of knowledge is right around the corner, as the second wind of change is already blowing.”
In all, Efo’Go feels that if the likes of Momife keep doing their work, “hope for humanity is not entirely lost as it seems.”
Momife, whose wife, Isioma, and two of their four children, Ofiligonachukwu and Kamsisochukwu, were in attendance expressed satisfaction with the number of guests who graced the event.
Momife says that the state of the country’s economy cannot in any way deter him from publishing more works. “I will still publish books despite the economy. The economy plays a major role in the lives of creatives especially limiting their publications. For me, I consider myself privileged to want to do this, and to achieve it,” he says.
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