By PRISCA SAM-DURU

Life in the prison yard is same in every part of the world though with a slight difference from the experience in developed countries. Here in Nigeria, it is usually nothing to write home about as few lucky ones who leave alive on completion of their terms, end up becoming worse than they were and worst of it all, face societal prejudices meted to them by society. These are basically some of issues Inyang E. Ekwo sets out to address in his latest literary offering, Beyond The Yard.

Beyond the Yard is a work masterfully woven by the author of Storm in the Will, 2009 winner of ANA/Jacaranda Prose Prize. It is his newest offering which comes as an expose of some unfortunate and very sympathetic situations that a lot of ex convicts are thrown into as a result of sheer providence.

The book is a suspense filled and rich narrative told throughout the first person pronoun and heavily laced with elements of humour, which also exposes Inyang Ekwo’s mastery of wit. The narrative seems written in defense of the awards he has won in prose and poetry despite being a judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria.

The book showcases the author as an extraordinary inimitable user of vocabulary, a quality typical of people in the ‘learned’ profession. His power of description which cannot be left unmentioned makes the book a more compelling and interesting piece to read.

The tale in Beyond The Yard stretches up to twenty-three chapters and revolves around the life of Abdul Chinedu Edo, a young man with complicated identity or rather, lineage, whose physical attributes as well as his reclusiveness both portray as a frail and timid individual. He is however, seen as events unfold in the book as a resilient and persistent fellow with well defined determination to survive in a tumultuous society.

His ignorance of court procedures is revealed as responsible for his eight years imprisonment because he pleaded guilty as advised and judgment is passed without the judge hearing his own side of the story or considering the fact that he is in his prime. He considers his ordeal as a scar inflicted by a lawyer which leads to resentment towards any one in the profession.

Abdul feels somehow fortunate on his release from prison that it is not an entirely wasted years since he is able to earn some notable certificates including a Higher National Diploma. With this height of education, he becomes optimistic on bidding the prison yard goodbye that he would not spend much time in the labour market in addition to it helping him erase whatever stigmatisation or discrimination awaiting him in the outside world.

The story draws sympathy from the readers as they learn that unlike some other inmates, Abdul is never visited by anyone during his imprisonment and on getting back to his late father’s house, to his chagrin, he is informed that his stepmother has relocated to Uyo with his other siblings. His predicament grows worse as he eventually finds himself relocating from the prison to the streets.

This is a suspenseful story that captures vividly what life in the gulag looks like to one who has never experienced such as well as daily experiences of most unfortunate people in the society whose situations make one ponder why providence stands against them despite their determination and persistence to survive.

The book is therefore a tale of the Nigerian situation, typical of an unjust society where people especially the young ones are left unattended to thus exposing them to war against their fate in a bid to succeed. It also underscores the importance of persevering to the end for if Abdul ended his life when he was at his wit’s end, he would never have had the opportunity to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Beyond The Yard is a work any reader or reviewer shouldn’t be talking about discovering errors as the captivating and compelling nature of the story cum author’s mastery of English language, makes for easy transition such that there is no room to searching for errors.