By Elizabeth Osayande

While many described Makoko as the Venice of Africa, what some never knew is the story of resilience, resistance, and poise inherent in the Makoko child.

So from a snap of an American chef navigating Makoko to intricate research of these people, that climax into stepping foot on the sands and shore of Makoko, Chioma Okereke in her second novel, “Water Baby,” bears it all telling the story of the throes and eventual triumphs of baby Yemoja.

“Water Baby, set in Makoko, a floating slum off mainland Lagos, according to Okereke, whose first novel is Bitter Leaf, follows 19-year-old Baby who joins a new drone-mapping project to escape the future her father has planned. When the video Baby makes goes viral she has the choice to leave Makoko and represent the community on the world stage or, perhaps, everything she wants is in the very place she wants to leave.

Excerpt:

What inspired the novel, “Water Baby?

I was watching a food programme which took place within the community and I was fascinated by the setting, which is just so atmospheric. Watching this American chef navigate Makoko in a way that I had never thought to do as a Nigerian myself. So I guess confronted with my ignorance, I went and researched the community.

Again, while watching that programme, I had this snapshot of a character, which was Baby. And so I knew I had to write her story, whatever her story was going to be. So that is what inspired the book.

Is it just an adventure? Or Is it to raise funds for your Makoko Pearls?

I am an author, so it started as writing a book. So, having gone to the community to ensure that I did write something accurately, I was moved by what I saw with my own eyes, and so I knew I couldn’t just leave it as a novel. I am happy that it may shed some awareness and spread some light, and people who don’t know about the Makoko community may learn a little bit more.

But if there is a way to push that needle and help people more, then that is why I wanted to try and get involved and try and create an organization in the hopes that if people were moved by the book and wanted to do more research, they would, one, know where to go, they would have somewhere to go, but also maybe encourage some fundraising so we could help the community.

Do you have a personal experience that relates to the book?

I think all writers weave their personal experiences into novels. It depends on a lot of things that go on in the individual characters. I don’t want to say things without giving too much away about the storyline. So there is a little bit of me in there, but I am not one character.

Can you describe Water Baby in one word?

I can’t do it in one word but it is a coming-of-age tale like I say, of a baby on the precipice of adulthood questioning her purpose in life.

How is this going to benefit people in Makoko?

I hope it benefits the people in Makoko in that it humanises their experience. I think sometimes we don’t think about people that live in that community. So I hope that by humanising Baby’s story and the other stories in that, you see them as real people navigating the world just much like yourself. I hope that it inspires the government to see that there are real changes that can be made to allow people to live more comfortably and also that improve Nigeria as a whole because Makoko is part of Lagos whether you like it or not.

Now, looking at the narration in the book of Baby’s father’s imminent fear of demolition of their home by higher authority, who may do to Makoko what was done to old Maroko. What message are you sending to the government?

I am not telling the government anything. Also, I’m telling a story, but as a government, that’s not something they’re not aware of. You’re aware of your history. The father says to keep silent because he equally is aware of the history and what happened in 2012 and other situations, which is why he’s saying don’t raise your head, don’t draw any attention, and let’s keep things how they are. But you can’t live like that, Yeah.

This is why Baby does what she ultimately does in the book and then gets the opportunity to represent Makoko on a world stage. It’s, you know, writing fiction or writing in general doesn’t just show the world the way it is. It shows the world the way you would like it to be. So I am hoping that people take inspiration from that. Whether it is the readers or whether it is the government themselves, there are different ways of addressing problems or a different way of looking at things.

What other themes does the novel address?

The book covers key issues from climate change to lots of women’s issues and digitization. It is not just about Baby’s journey, but there are lots of key issues. There’s drug abuse. There are lots of things in the book.

Do you intend to make the book a feature or a play? And do you believe in the axiom that blacks don’t read?

I don’t think of it that way. Equally, as an author, you hope that your book has different lives. So if someone wants to make a movie of it, I can see that very, very easily because I think the place is so atmospheric as well. So, I don’t imagine myself adapting that to a play because I haven’t thought about it.

From something like Chimamanda Adichie as the mid-wave global, do you see yourself in the future winning the Nobel Prize for literature?

If someone wants to award it to me, then that is great. So you don’t pick the prizes. I mean it does come down to exposure and people reading your books and learning about your books. Unfortunately, there are many, many books published every year and it’s very hard for an author to make waves or to be known. But that is my dream, is that people read the books. Awards are one thing and they’re great and it’s nice to have, but actually what you hope is for a response from readers. That’s why I write, is to get engagement.

So what next for you?

Oh, writing another book, I would hope. So, telling another story. That’s really what’s next. I’m working on something at the moment.