Eat the Heart of the Infidel by Andrew Walker review – the Harrowing of Nigeria and the rise of Boko Haram

A compelling account of how the history of northern Nigeria has been shaped by the rise of Islam and its conflict with modernity

This book contains one of the best descriptions of the psychology of Boko Haram I have read. A sect member explains to Andrew Walker why he kills in the name of religion. Imagine, he tells him, a bus depot full of people, some are travellers, some are hawking wares, some just idling and doing all sorts of things. The sect members, he explains, are the travellers, on their way to paradise; everyone else in the park is just hawking peanuts. Walker’s book is anecdotal, well researched and engaging. He has a novelist’s eye for story and situation. But the most important thing is that he knows Nigeria well, having lived there for about a decade, working for a local newspaper in Abuja, the Daily Trust, and later as a reporter for the BBC. Most of the non-historical accounts here come from his on-the-ground reporting done over many years.

Related: Boko Haram is losing ground – but will not be defeated by weapons alone | Vincent Foucher

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