On Close Examination by Gloria Chinyere Okwu

Chinyere’s life unfolds in the shadow of inflexible traditional expectations. From her childhood in Jos and Ukpor, she learns what Igbo culture demands of a good daughter, and how the cost of departing from cultural norms can shape a woman’s destiny.

Growing up with a domineering father and a passive mother prompts her to get married and escape their clutches. Tragically, her controlling and abusive husband, is determined to extinguish her self-worth.

Refusing to surrender, Chinyere escapes again and rebuilds her life as a single mother of three. She fights her way through university and finally sees a clear path to financial freedom and independence. But just as her prospects improve, a devastating breast cancer diagnosis unravels all she has accomplished.

Raw, unflinching, and deeply human, this memoir illuminates a Nigerian woman’s resilience, and her determination to reclaim her life from every force that has tried to silence it.