Where Bones Dance: An English Girlhood, An African War

318 Pages·2007·1.6 MB·English

by  Nina Newington

Where Bones Dance
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Where Bones Dance
$$$$
An English Girlhood,
An African War
Nina Newington
Ter race Books
A trade imprint of the University of Wisconsin Press
Terrace Books
An imprint of the University of Wisconsin Press
1930 Monroe Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53711
www.wisc.edu/wisconsinpress/
3 Henrietta Street
London WC2E 8LU, England
Copyright © 2007
The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
All rights reserved
1 3 5 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Newington, Nina, 1958–
Where bones dance : an English girlhood,
an African war / Nina Newington.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-299-22260-8 (alk. paper)
1. Children—Fiction. 2. British—Nigeria—Fiction.
3. Nigeria—History—1960—Fiction.
4. Nigeria—History—Civil War, 1967–1970—Fiction. I. Title.
PR6114.E946W47 2007
823´.92—dc22 2006031769
For all the anonymous saviors,
and in particular
Christine,
whose last name I do not know

Any sorrow can be borne if a story can be told about it.
Isak Dinesen
Some events do take place but are not true; others are—
although they never occurred.
Elie Wiesel

Contents
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xv
Cycle I: Good Snake
Lagos 3 City of Blood 44
Lines 4 Leper 45
Beach 6 Ibeji 50
School 10 Nigger 53
Christine 13 Trips 56
Dave 14 Killings 59
Red 15 Mamba 62
Daniel 19 Woman 64
Relations 21 War 68
Moonflower 25 Soldiers 69
Mrs. Welt 30 Brownies 71
Sister Alice 32 Fever 74
Akueke 35 Twin 76
Blood Brothers 39 Island 78
Bone 41 Return 80
ix