A Snake Under A Thatch

About the Book

This is a sequel to my first novel, FRIENDS AND DREAMS, and is narrated by its two protagonists: CYRIL JIDEOFO and BOLA AKANDE. In the prequel, Cyril was betrayed by his friend, BERNARD EKWEKWE, and was sent to prison for eight years for a crime he did not commit. Bola, a Columbia University student, meets and falls in love with Cyril’s daughter, CHIZUBE. Cyril, obsessed by the cruel injustice of his fate, and eager to clear his name of the stain of imprisonment, desperately searches for an all-important letter written by Bernard – a letter he is sure would prove his innocence. He finds a good job with a Nigerian accounting firm, in Newark, NJ, and then gets a crucial piece of information at a welcoming party for his family, organized by the firm. Bola has two problems: he does not know who his father is; and his mother, Hannah, is unaccountably hostile to his girlfriend Chizube. Cyril’s search ultimately comes to a shattering climax at the Newark International Airport. In the Epilogue, Bola’s mother tells him the unvarnished story of his life.

About the Author

Christian Chike Momah was born on October 20, 1930. He was educated at the St. Michael’s (C.M.S.) School, Aba; the Government College, Umuahia; and the University College, Ibadan, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in History, English and Religious Studies in 1953. In 1959, he obtained the Associateship of the Library Association from the University College, London. He was the first Nigerian graduate Land Officer (1954-1956) in the Public Service of the Eastern Nigerian government. Then he worked as a librarian in the University College, Ibadan (1956-1962); the University of Lagos (1962-1965); and the United Nations, first in Geneva, Switzerland (1966-1978), and then in New York (from 1978 till his retirement in 1990). He has authored five other published novels: (1). FRIENDS AND DREAMS (1997); (2) TITI: Biafran Maid in Geneva (1999); (3). THE SHINING ONES: The Umuahia School days of Obinna Okoye (2003; reprinted 2010)); (4). THE STREAM NEVER DRIES UP (2008); (5) A SNAKE UNDER A THATCH (2008). He has written a few articles on Nigeria and on the USA. Chike Momah has been married to Ethel, nee Obi, since 1959. The couple has two sons (Chukwudi and Azuka) and one daughter (Adaora), and has been blessed with seven grandchildren, and counting. Among his contemporaries in high school and/or college are some of Africa’s most noted writers: Chinua Achebe (Africa’s foremost novelist, trail-blazer and essayist); Chukwuemeka Ike (acclaimed university administrator and prolific novelist); Wole Soyinka (1986 Nobel laureate in Literature); and the late Christopher Okigbo (considered to be Nigeria’s “finest ever” poet, as per the 15th edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica). He is an involved member of the Nigerian community in the U.S.A., and has been honored with awards recognizing this involvement, including the first meritorious awards given by Songhai Charities, Inc., and by the Government College Umuahia Old Boys Association, Inc., both in 2003. In 2003, he was honored with a chieftaincy (Nnabuenyi-Nnewi) by HRH Kenneth Orizu, Igwe Nnewi, Anambra State, Nigeria. In 2011, the Texas House of Representatives, and the Senate, by a Resolution in each chamber, recognized him for his contributions to the literature of his homeland. Arlington, TX 76012