A riveting book that's hard to put down until you get to the end. A book for all ages, both young and old, very informative, and gives a bird eye view of life in Nigeria in the 1950s. A book that shows that once the determination and ambition is there, nothing is insurmountable. I recommend this for anybody out there that wants to enjoy reading a good book.

When I got this book and read the short preface which said "A destiny fulfilled - through story of courage, optimism, and determination in the face of adversities", that was the appetizer I needed. I proceeded to tackle the book with great enthusiasm, and great intensity, and never stopped reading until I finished it just after midnight.
The book was sensibly divided into 8 phases, each devoted to a decade of the author's life. He showed incredible power of recall of specific events in his childhood, his escapades and the pranks he played to circumvent the strict upbringing of his devoutly Christian parents who believed that you spoiled the child if you spared the rod. He talked of the various "miracles" and some near-death experiences during the Nigerian Civil War. The book reveals him as a talented storyteller and should have stretched far in excess of each 60 pages. It is an interesting book indeed. Five stars

This book deserves all the accolades it has received so far. The author is advised to write the next chapters to the book as he has left readers wanting more.

Congratulations on this book of your life. I could not drop it when I started to read it today after breakfast, until I concluded it at lunchtime. It's a story of a lifetime, well set out and articulate, no pomposity and no qualms about the authority, vision, and achievements of the author. I'm overwhelmed and wish I could think clearly as he has done. His power of recollection is second to none.

This brilliantly written book talks in a somewhat concise manner about a young man's determination to excel despite the odds around him. Having gone through the rigours of growing up under missionary parents in terribly uncomfortable lodgings in rural Africa, and surviving a brutal civil war, his quest for excellence remained relentless. I would liken his story to Ben Carson's, but from an African perspective. You never get tired of reading until you are finally done with it. I would urge the author to pen down a second edition.

"Growing up in Africa" is a memoir-based storytelling of Dr. Benajamin Obonna about his journey toward the path of fulfilling his destiny as a obstetrics/gynecologist (OB/GYN). Through a minimalistic and undersanding vernacular that is altogether endearing and witty yet informative, he takes you through a timeline of his quest toward pursuing, becoming, living, and reflecting his life that could be perceived as destiny in the making. However, his naivety to just live life as it presents itself alongside his futile and sometimes comical attempts at unintentionally veering off his path, but unknowingly finds himself coming back full circle toward fulfilling his destiny by the Divine creator, keeps the reader chuckling and engaged. Through the strict yet all the more loving, which may perhaps to some, be a relatable upbringing by his parents, side-handed subplots of those who had a mystified role in his naive and reckless adventures leading him through uncertain times, and others who may have had seemingly mundane roles in shaping his journey, tallies a life for which the author continues to denote could have been nothing short of a curious yet interesting miracle. His path athough unique may resonate with many. A delightful read even though at times, the desire to know more about other details of his life are abruptly dismissed as unrelated to the overall premise of his brief story-telling autobiography. His story is a lesson on the wonders of life: some aspects in one's journey may not seem to amount to anything until what has already happened and what has been experienced or achieved is reflected upon and leaves one in awe. Until then, we live our lives unknowningly fulfilling our destiny. As it may be, everything and every once of our existence is in it's right place.