Joane Grimley Eby

Why God Went Far Away and Other Margi Tales from N.E. Nigeria Joane Grimley Eby

Across the centuries and across the cultures humans have attempted to make sense of their world. Stories of creation abound; around the world tales explaining why things occur as they do are found. And for every culture, wisdom hides in the trials of the tales' characters, be they human or animal. Such tales must be passed on from generation to generation. Our human roots took hold in these tales; many of our "rights" and "wrongs" as a society were seeds within these adventures. From the tales came "household sayings" or "things my mother used to say" that follow us as silent shadows through our lives. The folktales in this book come from the Margi people of northeastern Nigeria. The animals and people of the tales display humor, wit, sarcasm, and harsh reality in their wins and failures. Lessons learned applied to the daily life of the Margi in the 1940s and earlier. With the tragic devastation that has occurred in northeastern Nigeria due to the rampages of the Boko Haram, the Margi have been brutally hit. All profits received from the sale of this book will go to aid the women and girls who have returned from Boko Haram captivity.