{"product_id":"spirit-of-language-that-held-ndem-b-oduu-9798218765255","title":"Spirit of Language That Held Us","description":"\u003cp\u003eSpirit of Language That Held Us is a luminous, interwoven narrative of remembrance, heritage, and the sacred role of language in holding communities together.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this poignant novel, Jack Ndem Oduu transports readers to the Ogoni homeland of Nigeria's Niger Delta, where the silence of an abandoned village calls to a boy named keenye booh, his name meaning \"to remember\" or \"to return.\" Guided by ancestral echoes and a destiny rooted in his very name, he discovers an elder who has kept a solitary fire alive through years of displacement and cultural erosion.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough vivid encounters, communal meals, proverbs, and storytelling, keenye booh learns that language is more than words, it is a vessel of history, a moral compass, and the spirit that binds generations. Each chapter immerses the reader in the rhythms of Ogoni life: yam festivals, sacred markets, gendered rituals, the governance of Bina kingship, and the masked mysteries of the Amanikpo society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOduu's narrative is both a work of art and a cultural archive. Drawing on ethnographic detail, sociological insight, and philosophical reflection, the story preserves endangered traditions while speaking to universal themes-identity, belonging, and the moral obligations we inherit from our past.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePart oral history, part literary fiction, and part cultural preservation project, this book appeals to readers of Chinua Achebe, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, and Ben Okri. It is a call to remember that every language carries a universe, and when one is lost, a part of humanity is diminished.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpirit of Language That Held Us will resonate with anyone who has felt the pull of ancestral memory or the urgency to protect cultural heritage. It is a novel that nourishes the heart while serving as a testament: as long as the words are spoken, the spirit that held us will endure.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAudience: Adult general readers, literary fiction audiences, cultural studies readers, African and diaspora literature enthusiasts, educators in anthropology and heritage studies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Ndem B. Oduu\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798218765255\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Published by Century Design Legal Press, an I\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/10\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 62\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.16lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.25w x 0.13d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLarge Print\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"Ndem B. Oduu","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":47424835518719,"sku":"9798218765255","price":29.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_e2cf3093-25fd-49c7-b86c-ad660c230141.jpg?v=1761532851","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/spirit-of-language-that-held-ndem-b-oduu-9798218765255","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}