"In a novel of stunning scope, Chuma Nwokolo moves across time and place to deliver a story that speaks to urgent contemporary concerns. His characters' indelible voices offer perspectives that are simultaneously global, political, and intimately human. The place at The Extinction of Menai's heart is the Niger delta village of Kreektown, even as the action spans continents. The cause of the trouble is an unethical drug trial administered to Kreektown...

"Ahmed is a camel herder, like his father was before him and like his young son Abdullahi will be after him. Together with his wife, Jamila, and the other families in their nomadic freeg, Ahmed's days are ruled by the rhythms of changing seasons, the needs of his beloved camel herd, and the rich legends and stories that link his life to centuries of Bedouin tradition. But Ahmed's world is threatened-by the French colonists just beyond the horizon,...