Nigerian literature continues to evolve, reflecting the country's dynamic socio-political landscape. The Rovingheights Bestseller List, in collaboration with Open Country Mag, has become a key indicator of reading trends in Nigeria. The list aims to expand by including data from other bookstores and publishers, and to secure sponsorship from brands that recognize the importance of literacy.
Political Developments Drive Book Sales
Data from recent years confirms that political developments significantly influence book sales in Nigeria. A microcosm of Nigeria is reflected in the top six nonfiction books. These books represent the three most consequential bases of public influence in the country today: the politicians, the activists, and the C-suite.
Examples include:
- Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System by Dele Farotimi (No. 1 in Nonfiction)
- Breaking Point by David Hundeyin (No. 5 in Nonfiction; No. 17 in Top 100)
- Books by Femi Adesina and Babatunde Fashola, notable members of the political bloc.
Political developments lead book buyers beyond the present and into history. For the third year running, historian Max Siollun retains his spots with What Britain Did to Nigeria (No. 12 in Nonfiction; No. 49 in Top 100) and Soldiers of Fortune (No. 26 in Nonfiction; No. 74 in Top 100).
Key Literary Figures
Several authors have consistently made an impact on the Nigerian literary scene:
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- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Adichie continues to maintain her statistical lead, placing more books on the list than anyone else.
- Damilare Kuku: Kuku leads the fiction genre, seizing the top two spots with Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow (No. 2 in Top 100) and Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad (No. 3 in Top 100).
- Chimeka Garricks: Garricks was the only male author in the Top 30 in Fiction last year, with A Broken People’s Playlist (No. 5 in Fiction; No. 7 in the Top 100) and Tomorrow Died Yesterday (No. 10 in Fiction; No. 13 in the Top 100).
- Chigozie Obioma: Obioma places all three of his novels: The Fishermen (No. 34 in Fiction; No. 44 in Top 100), The Road to the Country (No. 97 in Top 100), and An Orchestra of Minorities.
For the second time in three years, actress-cum-writer Damilare Kuku leads the genre, seizing the top two spots with former No. 1 Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad, now at No. 2 (No. 3 in Top 100), and her new book and our new Fiction No. 1: Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow (No. 2 in Top 100). The male author with the most presence, though, is Chigozie Obioma, who places all three of his novels: The Fishermen (No. 34 in Fiction; No. 44 in Top 100), and, barely making it to the Top 100, The Road to the Country at No. 97 and An Orchestra of Minorities at No. Of the debut authors, the highest-ranked is Fatima Bala’s Broken: Not a Halal Story (No. 7 in Fiction; No. 10 in Top 100), but in the mix are two more: Pemi Aguda’s Ghostroots (No. 12 in Fiction; No. 16 in Top 100) and Chukwuebuka Ibeh’s Blessings (No. 18 in Fiction; No. One pattern holds from last year: the impact of film adaptations. Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani’s I Do Not Come to You by Chance rises to No. 4 in Fiction and No. 6 in the Top 100, following the film adaptation by producer Genevieve Nnaji and director Ishaya Bako, and just outside the Top 100 is Colleen Hoover’s It Ends with Us, the source of the American actress Blake Lively film and, now, controversy.
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The Rise of Poetry
Poetry has seen a significant positive shift, with Oyindamola Shoola’s Face Me, I Face You becoming the first poetry book to crash the Top 100, selling like a novel. The old guard has gone nowhere: 2022 topper Dami Ajayi’s Affection and Other Accidents is No. 2, and Umar Abubakar Sidi, who occupied the top two spots on the 2023 list, holds at No. 5 with The Poet of Dust and No. 9 with Like Butterflies Scattered About By Art Rascals, flanking two books by Rupi Kaur, The Sun and Her Flowers and Milk and Honey. The Indian Canadian Instapoet lodges a third book, at No. 19, with Homebody. Making his debut in the category, at No.
Top Booksellers and Publishers
Several booksellers and publishers are pivotal in shaping Nigeria's literary landscape.
Cassava Republic Press
Established in 2006 by Bibi Bakare-Yusuf, Cassava Republic Press focuses on affordability, local talent development, and publishing African writers. The publishing house aims "to change the way we all think about African writing" and build a new body of African writing that links writers across different times and spaces."[2] Cassava Republic has built a reputation primarily for literary fiction but also for fiction in other genres, such as crime. In 2014, an associated imprint called Ankara Press was launched, with titles available in digital form as e-books. Cassava Republic further expanded sales of its titles with a distribution deal to make the company's books directly available in US bookstores in 2017.
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Rovingheights
Rovingheights is a prominent bookstore in Nigeria that compiles the annual Rovingheights Bestseller List in collaboration with Open Country Mag. This list serves as a key indicator of reading trends in Nigeria, highlighting the impact of political developments and key literary figures on the country's book sales.
Onitsha Market Literature
A unique aspect of Nigerian literary history is the Onitsha market literature, a 20th-century genre of sentimental, moralistic novellas and pamphlets produced by a semiliterate school of writers and sold at the bustling Onitsha market in eastern Nigeria. These writings often explore westernized urban life and warn against its dangers. Typical titles include “Rose Only Loved My Money,” “Drunkards Believe Bar as Heaven,” and “How to Get a Lady in Love.”
Detailed Bestseller List Data
The following tables provide detailed rankings of books across various categories.
Top 10 Non-Fiction Books
| S/N | Rank | Title | Author | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System | Dele Farotimi | Independent Publisher |
| 2 | 2 | Working with Buhari | Femi Adesina | [Publisher Name] |
| 3 | 3 | Vantage | Olumide Soyombo | [Publisher Name] |
| 4 | 4 | Leaving the Tarmac | Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede | [Publisher Name] |
| 5 | 5 | Breaking Point | David Hundeyin | [Publisher Name] |
| 6 | 6 | [Title] | [Author] | [Publisher Name] |
| 7 | 7 | [Title] | [Author] | [Publisher Name] |
| 8 | 8 | [Title] | [Author] | [Publisher Name] |
| 9 | 9 | [Title] | [Author] | [Publisher Name] |
| 10 | 10 | [Title] | [Author] | [Publisher Name] |
Impact of Social and Political Events
The case of Dele Farotimi's Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System illustrates how social and political events can drive book sales. After Farotimi's abduction and imprisonment, social media users rallied for him, leading to a significant increase in book sales. In six days, the book sold over 2,000 copies, demonstrating the power of book-buying as a form of protest against government oppression.
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