Exposé On Dirty Sides of Campus Life

Caught In The Storms is a non fiction authored by a budding writer, Amaka Ezenwankwo, an Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) graduate of Mass Communication, who though expresses herself in key genres of Literature, flaunts a bias for prose and poetry.

With the use of non fictitious places, locations, schools, etc, Caught In The Storms provides deep moral lessons for teenagers. It also warns parents/Guardians, of the danger of not properly monitoring their children and wards while on campus.

In leu of this, the author opines that irrespective of students' religious background or level of discipline, it is imperative to act positively whenever parents spot any behavioural changes in their children/wards while in the higher institutions.

With twenty chapters and 173 pages, the author embarks on a detailed expository mission with her goal, being to address issues relating to truancy, immorality, illicit love affairs with married men commonly known among female undergraduates as Aristos. Their choice to live a life of immorality the author states, is all in a bid to live life of opulence so as to be addressed as happening babes.

The reader finds this narrative un-put-down-able as Amaka paints a vivid picture of how tertiary Institutions succeed in transforming saints to sinners except of course, a situation whereby a student passes through the institution without allowing it pass through him or her.

The story begins as we see Sandra, the first daughter of Mr and Mrs Smith Nwafor, from a very humble and sound Christian background, being tossed up and down with disappointments from post JAMB examinations even after scoring high in the UME. This delays and in fact, prevents her from gaining admission into any of the Nigerian Universities. She however decides to try the Polytechnic and is admitted into the Federal Polytechnic Oko, Anambra state, to study Mass Communication.

A great transformation takes place in the life of Sandra as soon as she meets some friends; Tina, Linda and Oge. These characters are typical representatives of female undergraduates who prostitute on campus. After she is wowed by the opulence of these friends, Sandra enrolls and finds herself an Aristo in the person of a business mogul, Brown Johnson. Mr Johnson leaves no stone unturned in taking Sandra to the heights of vain enjoyment, to the detriment of her faith in God, humility and worse of all, her studies.

Having tasted the sweetness of vanity, Sandra finds it difficult to do away with Johnson even as she finds a young man, Mike who is ready to take her to the altar. She goes diabolical, casting spells on the men so as to keep both. Her downfall begins with Mrs Brown finally aware of her husband's romance with young Sandra which she tackles with fervent prayers. At this juncture, one can only guess what Sandra's lot will be. She truly gets caught in the very storm she created out of lust for materialism. As for her friends, their end is better read than experienced except Oge, who repents from prostitution and abortions and finally settles down with husband and son.

Caught in The Storm, is a modest effort by Amaka and she should be commended for joining other authors who are fronting the campaign for national rebirth and reorientation of the youths so that they would resist every form of enticement from opulence and luxury, in order to protect their future. The book is therefore recommended to all.