Today, I bring you another book tour where you get the opportunity to read a brief synopsis and an excerpt from a collection of short stories. The author; Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha will be available to answer your general questions about writing and her works. And wait for it, there’s a nice catch! There will be a free book giveaway for one lucky participant! So, go ahead and share the link with friends and invite them to join the conversation.
BRIEF SYNOPSIS
Beyond the Trial is a collection of three short stories. The first story, ‘Erased Reproach’, is the story of young love and ruthless heartbreak. Funke, a teenager at the beginning of the story, gives in to peer pressure and ends up with an unwanted pregnancy which leads her into forced exile from her childhood home. In ‘Rude Awakening’, Nkechi’s eutopic world is brought to a rude halt when her husband of eleven years dies suddenly in a car accident. She must face a chequered future alone with three sons. A family’s past is haunting its members in ‘Shadows from the Past’ and it is Ada’s responsibility, to lead her entire family out of darkness and into the light. A long-postponed visit home opens a can of worms about the past and provides the opportunity to deal with it and put it well behind them all. Beyond the Trial, is a collection of three short stories about three women who choose to see life beyond their trials and dare to reach for it.
AN EXCERPT FROM ‘RUDE AWAKENING’
Listen to the reading by the author here
The Emecheta family compound had been repainted in preparation for the funeral, but there were no new buildings or structures on it. It reminded Nkechi of the stagnancy of waters fed by streams of greed. Various canopies had been mounted in, and around, the compound. Most of them were labelled to identify the groups expected to occupy them. Some members of the groups were already sitting under the canopies in matching attires or headgears for the event. A traditional thatched hut (mkpukpu) had been erected close to the entrance of the compound. It was meant to be occupied by the male members of the Emecheta family after the corpse had been laid to rest. Mama’s golden brown casket occupied a small canopy in front of the main house. A grave had been dug some distance away from it.
Seated in a bigger canopy adjacent to the casket were Mama’s immediate family members. Nkechi had no desire to sit with them. She identified a mango tree in a corner of the compound. She had enjoyed long conversations with Mama and Afam in the early years of her marriage under that tree. It held special memories for her. She dragged a white, plastic chair from underneath the nearest canopy, repositioned it under the mango tree, and sat on it. Uzoma did likewise.
From their position, they had a good view of the entire compound and the funeral proceedings. They ignored inquisitive glances from villagers who were wondering who the two fair-complexioned, bespectacled women were. When it came to the dust-to-dust rites, the officiating priest called for her with the public address system.
“Mrs Nkechi Emecheta, please come forward,” he announced.
Nkechi was speechless. She looked over her shoulder as if expecting another person to come forward. She was aware the officiating priest was looking pointedly in her direction. So much for thinking nobody had recognized her! She could see Mama’s hand in this. She had assumed her quiet presence would be enough for Mama. She should have known her mentor better. One could have heard a pin drop in the deafening silence that engulfed the compound when she was called to step forward. As she stepped out, a murmur erupted as people whispered among themselves. Some people’s inquisitiveness had been assuaged.
She avoided looking at Papa, Chidi and Nwakaego and walked straight to the priest who handed her a spade with dust in it. Her dark glasses hid her eyes well. No one could decipher her feelings through her facial expressions. Today, she was a mysterious woman. The priest explained to her that Mama had requested that she take part in the dust to dust graveside rites. She did. She was taken aback when he told her Mama had also asked that she give the funeral oration. Nkechi was totally unprepared for this. Mama was favouring her above her own biological children. She dared not look at their faces even more now. The priest gave her the microphone and encouraged her to speak. These were Mama’s last wishes. It behoved them to honour her, the way she desired to be honoured, he explained.
Nkechi took a deep breath, pushed her sunglasses up onto her headgear, and in flawless Igbo language, she addressed the villagers. There was total silence.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha wrote her first unpublished novel at the age of six and has been writing poems, scripts, short stories, and songs since then, mainly for leisure. One of her poems, “The New Yam Festival,” won second prize in a nationwide poetry competition in 1983. She was the recipient of the silver prize at the Kanagawa World Biennial Children’s art competition in Japan in 1987. She was educated at two Federal Government Colleges (Enugu and Ijanikin, Lagos) and at the University of Benin Medical School. She holds a Masters degree with distinction from University College London.
Her debut publication Beyond the Trial is an inspirational collection of short stories published in 2015. It was nominated for the 2015 Dan Poynter Global EBook Award. In 2015, Beyond the Trial was featured in the London Book Fair, Book Expo America, Beijing Book Fair, Frankfurt Book Fair and the Guadalajara Book Fair. It was also featured in the 2016 Nigeria International Book fair in Lagos.
Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha is constantly trying to maintain a balance between medical practice, family commitments and her passion for writing. She is grateful for the inspiration and support she gets from her husband, family and friends. She is undecided which gives her more pleasure – writing songs or words.
Beyond the Trial can be purchased from the following bookstores:
TerraKulture, Laterna Ventures, Patabah bookstore, Bible Wonderland, UNILAG bookshop, Vog & Wod Bookstore, The Hub Media Store, De Prince Supermarket, CLAM Bookshop, and other leading bookstores nationwide.
Beyond the Trial can also be purchased online in the Paperback format via: Konga and Amazon. The E-book is available at these online stores: Amazon and KOBO
Now you can leave your questions in the comments section below.
ifeywrites 
Wow. I would really like to read Beyond The Trial. The excerpt featured here drew me in.
Side thought- Is the author on Facebook? I’m inspired by her writing profile.