Description
Book SynopsisAn Igbo woman becomes king at a time of extraordinary change in Africa
Trade ReviewThe Female King of Colonial Nigeria makes a solid contribution to the literature on women's (auto) biography and the cogent treatments of gender, and sexualities. The book will benefit scholars, students, and those interested in issues of women and gender.
* African Studies Quarterly *
[A] fascinating exploration of the fluidity of gender and the nature of political authority. And it's a remarkable reconstruction not only of colonial rule at the local level, but also of pre-colonial life and post-colonial memory. I highly recommend.6/29/12
* New Books in Gender *
Achebe presents a compelling history that embodies yet transcends the local. This thorough and detailed biography will be of great use to specialists in Igbo history and to scholars of women's and gender history more broadly.
* American Historical Review *
The Female King is a thoughtful, well-written, and amply documented work that should have great influence on those who write about the Igbo, about African women, and about African history.
* Women's Review of Books *
The Female King of Colonial Nigeria will be a valuable read for a variety of audiences. Whether one is interested in colonial history, gender history, family history, or women's history, there is much to be found in this biography to enrich and complicate one's understandings.
* Journal of Colonialism and Colonial History *
The Female King of Colonial Nigeria is a rich and significant book that illuminates history, culture, politics, and gender constructions in Igbo land. The book is lucidly written, provides good examples of field methods, and will enrich scholars and students of a wide range of disciplines from history to anthropology and gender studies.
* Intl. Journal of African Historical Studies *
The Female King of Colonial Nigera . . . is one of the most compellingly argued, rigorously researched scholarly writings in the fields of history and women studies in colonial Igbo society, Nigeria and Africa.
* Leeds African Studies Bulletin *
[This is] the story of a woman, Ahebi Ugbabe, who rose from the status of a local girl and commercial sex worker to that of a village headman, a warrant chief and a king....[This book]... salvage[s] the history of a woman who became the only warrant chief in colonial Nigeria...distinguishes between Western concepts of gender and sexuality, and the indigenous meanings of these concepts in an African setting.... [A] well-written, amply researched, and efficiently documented [book]. It is a major contribution to African history and the practice of oral history.March 2013
* Reviews in History *
Table of ContentsEkene / Acknowledgments
Nkwado / The Preparation: All Trees Grow in the Forest, but the Ora Singled Itself Out
Nkowa / The Introduction: Unspoken, Blame the Mouth; Unheard, Blame the Ear
1. Oge Nwatakili: The Time of Childhood, ca. 1880–1895
2. Mgbakpu Ahebi: Exile in Igalaland, ca. 1895–1916
3. Performing Masculinities: Homecoming—and She Becomes a Man, ca. 1916–1948
4. Inside King Ahebi's Palace, ca. 1916–1948
5. Mastering Masculinities: Ekpe Ahebi Masquerade—the Final Insult, ca. 1931–1948
Mmechi / The Conclusion: Ahebi Today—the Works That We Do Are the Things by Which We Are Remembered
Appendix: Select Criminal and Civil Cases in Nsukka Division, 1921–1935
Glossary of Enugu-Ezike Chronological Terms
Glossary of Igbo, Igala, and Akpoto Words
Notes
Bibliography
Index
