To define Nigeria is to tell a half-truth. Many have tried, but most have concluded that it is impossible to capture the true scope and significance of Africa’s most populous nation through words or images. Yet here, through personal essays from 24 of its writers, a more accurate picture comes into view, and in her essay, Lola Shoneyin highlights the importance of memory in carving out our national identities from the moment we’re born. Powerful, lyrical and entirely unforgettable, the essays from OF THIS OUR COUNTRY weave together a living portrait of Nigeria, one that is as beautiful as it is complex.