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Terra Cotta Beauty

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Follow the lives, loves, and hopes of an entire community in Jola Naibi's moving debut.

A carefully crafted selection of short stories, this collection examines life in Lagos, Nigeria, during the era of military rule. It reveals the struggles, loves, and hopes of a disparate group of people whose lives always manage to intersect - sometimes in the most devastating ways.

With each brief conversation and split-second decision containing consequences that reach further than anyone could ever imagine, each of the book's seven tales is a delicate thread that helps form the social fabric of a nation divided.

From a woman whose journalist husband is jailed for criticizing the government to a young man's reluctant descent into crime. Terra Cotta Beauty acts as a carefully crafted ode to the essence of Lagos itself: its people.

142 pages, Paperback

First published June 12, 2014

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Jola Naibi

1 book2 followers

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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Profile Image for Adrienne Thompson.
Author 39 books234 followers
October 20, 2014
In Terra Cotta Beauty, Author Jola Naibi has penned captivating tales expertly woven together and steeped in Nigerian culture. As I traveled from story to story, I found it hard to put this book down as the undeniable connections of humanity unfolded before my eyes. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about a different culture and human experience. Naibi has a way with words and is a wonderful storyteller. (I was provided with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)

4 Stars

Adrienne Thompson
Author of Bluesday
Profile Image for Anna Bella.
Author 1 book35 followers
April 30, 2022
Beautifully written. The title Terra Cotta Beauty is exactly that; beautiful. Each story is prolifically interwoven shedding light on lives thriving filled with love, loss, longing, belonging, politics, poverty, family and community in Lagos, Nigeria.

I loved the writing style. The plot twists were strategically intertwined with unsuspecting and unfortunate situations. The stories were easily sculpted into shape - life’s shape, creating a communal bond of love and forgiveness.
Profile Image for T.A. Beasley.
Author 7 books116 followers
December 16, 2014
In Terra Cotta Beauty by Jola Naibi readers meet an array of characters throughout short stories. The collection of stories mingles so the readers won’t forget the characters. The author does a wonderful job expressing the Nigeria culture with a military background. These characters lives are affected heavily by the ruling of the military in Largos, Nigeria.

These seven stories were enjoyable and easy to read. I really liked that each story carried into the next one which caused the book to have a consistent flow. I recommend Terra Cotta Beauty to others.

This book was provided by the author for review purposes only.

Teresa Beasley
A&RBC Reviews
3 Stars=Okay Page Turner
Profile Image for Misty Iputi.
265 reviews3 followers
October 27, 2014

Terra Cotta Beauty is short stories that show how closely people lives can intertwine and influence. The way this book is written seems to show family, values, and the choices made will influence more people than anyone can know.


This book was good and is worth a 4/5 stars.

Given a free copy for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews

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