The second novel from Nigerian-born writer Uchenna Awoke, A Siege of Owls, is a blend of coming of age in West Africa and magical realism. His first novel, The Liquid Eye of a Moon, was published while Awoke lived in Fayetteville as the inaugural Arkansas International Writer-at-Risk Residency Fellow. This new book navigates the journey of a young boy, Ekwe, whose dreams extend beyond his small village. Against the advice of his father, Ekwe touches a forbidden leaf. What follows is a journey that intertwines real-world violence with folklore across a landscape where nobody is truly safe. Awoke, who now lives in Iowa City, says like his first novel, this one was inspired by his own youth in Nigeria.
Awoke: There is this violence in my community in Nigeria, a conflict between migratory herdsmen and sedentary farmers. And then we got caught in the middle of the conflict because I grew up in a farming village. So we got caught up in the conflict and we had to flee. Thanks to the Artist Protection Fund/Arkansas International Writer-at-Risk Residency Program that granted me a year and a half of sanctuary in Fayetteville. So that was what inspired this book.
Kellams: And whenever I talk to you about your work, I always have a reader's vocabulary on names. So if I mispronounce a character's name, please correct me.
Awoke: Okay. You pronounce it well.
Kellams: Is this young boy — this man who is in a village, he has bigger dreams than staying there. And he touches this leaf that he has been told not to. Is touching this forbidden magical leaf folklore in Nigeria?
Awoke: I grew up in a culture deeply influenced by storytelling and folklore defining — often defining — how we see the world. The tortoise is a subject of many folklore stories. My father would tell me, yeah, as a witty trickster, the character is more or less known for the consequences of dishonest behavior. And just like you have in the book, owls are bad omens. And you know about the tree that I wrote about in the book, which is a revered mystical tree symbolic of power and ritual. And as depicted in the book, it's neither a place, a ransom drop point, or a place for evil. We are very mythical in Nigeria. We thrive in storytelling and folklore. As a matter of fact, A Siege of Owls mythologizes the aggressive extremities of our times by blending folklore, magic realism and the stark realities of violence in contemporary Nigeria.
Kellams: Just like your first novel, Ekwe is a boy at the center of this going-on adventure. Do you see some of a younger you in this young man?
Awoke: Yeah, in terms of wandering. Wandering as a theme is explored through two key perspectives in A Siege of Owls — firstly as a means of existential survival, looking closely at angles that best align with the specific journey my characters are on. A psychological and philosophical act of rejecting a mundane, safe or meaningless existence in favor of a self-determined journey, often provoked by or borne out of existential dread or a desire for freedom. These are elements that conspire to fire a quest. Curiosity leading to his touching the forbidden leaf, against his father's warning, are two of my characters — as a matter of fact — fall into this category of wandering. Ekwe seems tired of a mundane existence, the sort of exhaustion that stems from a repetition of daily life: waking up early every morning to trek to the farm or to school, eating the same kind of food he despises over and over again, and the feeling of being hunted by the boundaries of a world too small to contain his restless spirit. Like I said, these are elements that conspire to fire his curiosity, leading to his touching the forbidden leaf. For Geoffrey, it's a deeper, ongoing struggle to find meaning. The sort of feeling that arises when life becomes a cycle of routine expectations and unfulfilled personal needs, leading to a loss of meaning. For him, it's not just boredom. It's a deep weariness from having to exist as a person, which may have resulted from a traumatic childhood. His father had abandoned him and his mother in their rural, poverty-stricken village and followed his second wife. So Geoffrey sees himself as a spectator in his own life rather than an active participant in that village.
Kellams: There are moments in this novel — it's such a cliché way to say it, but very real — there's also this magical realism after touching the forbidden leaf. And I wonder what it was like for you to weave things that are horrific and violent, that are actually happening, with these moments of magical realism that could also be danger. What was that like to write these in the same book?
Awoke: It was something very exciting. As a storyteller, I rely so much on my imagination and it's an opportunity to exercise that imagination. So I derive so much joy from creativity. For instance, when I wrote about that magical 3D web, I was so excited writing about it, trying to imagine what the reader would feel when he reads that section of the book. So it's something that excites me to create this magical realism.
Kellams: Do you think about the fact that many of us who read it are not going to be familiar with — so you're our introduction. You are our guide to both Nigeria and this folklore.
Awoke: It's so exciting to be your guide, to introduce you to Nigeria. So I try, in writing this book, to create that context for the reader. I try, as you can see, I used a lot of imagery in the book to ground the reader in the setting. And I don't know if I succeeded in doing that, but that was my intention. I used metaphors, similes in my effort to ground the reader in the setting. Someone who has never been to Nigeria.
Kellams: There is in this novel tragedy, danger, despair. But there's also hope. There's also kindness. And how important is it for you as a writer to give readers hope and kindness?
Awoke: It's very important to me. I always wanted to write a novel that did not shy from deep tragedy. A story full of social upheaval and that complicated grace of characters. It was my hope to use lyrical, lush language and moments of unexpected, surprising comedy to navigate the tragedy, ultimately offering hope and grace to my readers.
Uchenna Awoke's second novel, A Siege of Owls, is now on bookshelves across the country and in fact, across the world. He was the first Arkansas International Writer-at-Risk Residency Fellow when he lived in Fayetteville. He spoke to us from his new home in Iowa City via Zoom earlier this month. This is Ozarks at Large.
Uchenna Awoke's second novel, A Siege of Owls, is now on bookshelves. He was the first Arkansas International Writer-at-Risk Residency Fellow when he lived in Fayetteville. He spoke to us from his new home in Iowa City via Zoom earlier this month.
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