Chibok is a poor and neglected town in Nigeria, where much of the population work in agriculture and life was fairly uneventful in this obscure corner of the country, until an event which brought it to the world’s notice. On the 14th April, 2014, members of Boko Haram kidnapped 276 schoolgirls. Less than fifty managed to jump off the vehicles which they were loaded into. Only one other girl has been rescued. The rest, tragically, are still missing.

Author , Helon Habila, travelled to Chibok; a town in lockdown since the events of 2014. While telling the story of the terrible events in Chibok, he also explains the current political situation in Nigeria. The checkpoints, the roadblocks, the schools burnt down in local villages he passes through, the villages abandoned, the ethnic and religious divisions, intolerance and corruption are all shown without emotion and are the more shocking for the journalistic style.

Boko Haram is the nickname for a group named Jama’atu Ahlis Surina Lidda’awati Wal-Jihad, or “the people committed to the propaganda of the Prophet’s teachings and Jihad,” which was founded by Mohammed Yusuf. With such a long name, they presumably needed a shortened version; Boko Haram, which means (loosely translated), “Western education is abhorrent.” Indeed, two months before the attack in Chibok, Boko Haram terrorists invaded the Federal Government College, killing fifty nine young boys. It was a chilling rehearsal for Chibok. Previously, the terrorists had been robbing banks; but as they were pushed back into the forest, kidnapping became an easier way to make money, as well as providing women to cook, clean and to act as ‘wives.’ One of their main aims is to stop education, especially that of girls.

Habila explains the history behind the events and he also shows the impact that they have caused. Not only to the parents of the girls; many of whom have suffered physically, mentally and even died after the loss of their daughters, but also to the community and families. One of the most shocking parts of the book, though, comes when he interviews three of the girls themselves and they tell their story in such a straight-forward way. Even more shocking though, was (and is) the political inactivity after the girls were taken. In fact, one minister erupted when being interviewed on television, so incensed was he about being questioned about the missing girls. It seems almost impossible that such a terrible thing as young girls being taken by force, for no other reason than wanting an education, has simply been ignored by the government of the country that is meant to protect them.

This is an extremely important read. It gives a good background to the political situation in Nigeria and explains, without emotive language, but in a very moving way, the events in Chibok. He also tells of those, such as the Education Must Continue Initiative, who are fighting against Boko Haram and who helped some of the girls who did escape that day. The people Habila interviews are so remarkably stoic that I have to say I was astounded, tearful and extremely angry at the end of this book. A very moving read, which I highly recommend. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

The Chibok Girls chronicles one author’s journey to Nigeria to find out more about this tragic event. Helon Habila is an author, lecturer, and professor, who was originally from Nigeria. For this book, he travels back to the country he has not visited in 20 years to talk to the families of the missing girls. He gains unprecedented access to the town and the families to bring us this book.

He tells us how Boko Haram originated and how failures at the government level led to their rise to power. The people who will talk to him do so secretly, for fear of reprisals. The town of Chibok is guarded and no journalists are allowed inside. No one is allowed inside the school buildings where the kidnappings happened. We get a picture of a country in turmoil and a people living in fear.

The author interviews families, as well as some of the girls who managed to escape. The others have never been heard from again.

The book is relatively short, but tells the story completely. It is written in an easy-to-read style. The story is organized well and told at a good pace so that there are no slow parts in the book. Background information is given so that a reader who is unfamiliar with the situation can understand exactly what happened and what led up to it.

I enjoyed this book and hope that someday, the girls will be returned to their grieving families.