The Trial of Monogamy

Publisher Marketing: A male child Udoka, born to a family of five daughters and one son is raised by his single mother after the boy's father dies prematurely in a rural third world community. The boy drops out of school at a very early age and joins the company of village loafers called "ofekes" and "ofo-ogolis." These specialize in hanging around where there are wedding ceremonies, burial, and chieftaincy installation ceremonies, venues where there will be free food and free drinks. During one of such ceremonies in which Mr. Odike his cousin is taking a second wife, the uneducated Udoka sees, and falls in love with Chioma who is educated and who hails from a completely different social background being a catechist's daughter. Udoka gets rebuffed. Twist of fate again brings both young people together and through encouragement from Chioma, Udoka goes to school, progresses, and ultimately marries Chioma. Further twist of fate sees the couple move over to Atlanta in America where Chioma trains for, and becomes a registered nurse and starts earning well. Her new situation positions Chioma into seeing Dr. Gerald an attending consultant in the hospital where she works. Chioma falls in love with the rich medical doctor and without provocation, divorces her beleaguered husband who, laden with the burden of debts and child support, flees from Atlanta back to his Akunwanta native land. Chioma gets disappointed by Dr. Gerald after she aborts a baby she was expecting for him. The polygamous nature of the common Akunwanta origin of the divorced former couple holds out the only opportunity whereby Chioma can find a place as a second wife to a now prosperous and polygamous Udoka. The monogamy by law policy in Atlanta as opposed to the accepted polygamy by culture in Akunwanta plays out favorably for both parties as it becomes possible for Udoka to remain monogamous in Atlanta but polygamous in Akunwanta. One man's apparent poison plays out as another man's delicious meat. Will the one learn from the other? Contributor Bio:  Akamnonu, Oliver Oliver Akamnonu, an author and poet, is a medical doctor who specialized in anesthesiology. He attended St Brigit's Catholic School Enugu, and later Government Secondary School Afikpo Nigeria where he was a college scholar and rose to be Captain of School. He studied medicine in the University of Ibadan medical school and specialized in anesthesiology. He was a two term elected state chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association and a member of Board of the Federal Medical Center Owerri Nigeria as well as a member of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria the apex regulatory body for the practice of medicine and dentistry in Nigeria. He was conferred with the Distinguished Medical Practitioner (DMP) award in October 2005. A Nigeria-born citizen of the United States of America, Dr Akamnonu is the author of more than sixteen published books in the USA, among which is the award-winning poetry book "Rap to Mars." Dr Akamnonu is married to Dr Chika Agnes Akamnonu and they have four children. He lives in Massachusetts USA. Assistance with illustrations by Obasi Akamnonu and Adanna Akamnonu in New York and Michelle Onyekaba and Pamela Onyekaba in Minneapolis Minnesota, USA