Sally Dyson (compiler and editor), Nigeria: The Birth of Africa's Greatest Country. Volume Two. From the Pages of Drum Magazine. Ibadan: Spectrum books Limited, 1998.
A4-format, soft cover, card wraps, 258 + (4) pages, and 287 + (4), illustrations.
Wraps slightly scuffed, corners a little curled, owner's name on the title-page. Good to very good condition.
Volume 1 and 2 complete.
'It was through my participation in the well known BBC programme, World Today, when I was a student in London, that I first met Mr William Clark, of The Observer newspaper, who in turn introduced me to Mr. Jim Bailey, publisher of the Drum Magazine, then the most popular magazine on the continent of Africa.
'Jim Bailey was then, and has always been, a citizen of South Africa, the country much detested at the time because of its apartheid policies. Because of these policies his visits to Africa, and his connections with Africans, were always suspect. South African intelligence services were therefore always shadowing him. He, nevertheless, tenaciously maintained his contacts. The fact that he did not get into serious trouble with the South African Government, was because his father was a very close friend of the indomitable Sir Winston Churchill.
'I found in Mr Bailey undoubted appreciation of all human beings and a deep knowledge of the affairs of my country. As a student living away from home, I found Mr Baileys company a good opportunity to be up-to-date with events in Nigeria.
'Alhaji Shehu Malami, OFR, High Commissioner, Nigerian High Commission, Pretoria.'
'Nigeria: The Birth of Africa's Greatest Country chronicles the socio-political events of colonial and immediate post-colonial Nigeria as recorded by Drum, the popular monthly magazine of those times. The diverse and turbulent events, and the numerous complex characters who occupied the centre stage in the epic drama that was the evolution of the Nigerian state are reported with passion and mission in the several editions which were compiled to make up this beautiful and interesting two-volume text. Parading an array of stars Adegoke Adelabu, Festus Okotie-Eboh, Mbonu Ojike, Ladoke Akintola, Michael Okpara, Tafawa Balewa, Anthony Enahoro and the larger-than-life trio, Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe and Ahmadu Bello along with their many admirers and disciples the political history of Nigeria which they wrote with their lives and times is vividly recorded for posterity on the pages of these books. Copiously illustrated with a treasure of 'ancient' photographs, social issues of sports, secret cults, ritual murder, entertainment, the arts, religion, juju, the 1966 coup, the Civil War and many others are also prominently featured in this compilation arousing the memories of those who lived through those times and firing the imagination of those who were either too young then to understand what was happening, or who had not been born altogether. The two-volume book is strongly recommended to all literate Nigerians primarily, and people of all nations and tongues generally, as a well of information about this acknowledged potential giant and most populous black African nation worldwide.'
Together, volumes 1 and 2 are selling on the Internet for prices of up to 500 dollars, U.S..
Media history.
