Title: Spirit of the Times
Author: Osieka Osinimu Alao
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 978-978-62787-0-4
Print Length: 162 pages
Publisher: NIRPRI Publishers
Publication Date: June 6, 2026
We are pleased to announce the release of Osieka Osinimu Alao’s new poetry collection, Spirit of the Times. Spirit of the Times is divided into six sections: Smoking a Country’s Lungs and Other Anthems of Combustion; Poet of Ashes; Postgeneration; Earthroots; Bloodearth; and Postscript. The poems are thematically linked by their portrayal of pertinent issues plaguing Nigeria, Africa, and the world at large. Spirit of the Times takes a forensic poetic dive into the nature of the human race by interrogating its strengths, complexities, weaknesses, and excesses.
In about eighty-seven poems, Spirit of the Times figuratively captures the realities, temperaments, and trajectories of the present-day Nigerian state. At a time when the world is in dire need of hope, assurance, direction, and safety, Spirit of the Times poetically and prophetically bears these burdens. Spirit of the Times is Alao’s fourth poetry collection, after Epidocyle (2011), Apocyle (2012), and Blood and Ink (2013).
Osieka Osinimu Alao is a Nigerian writer, poet, literary critic and scholar, essayist, editor, media and communication practitioner, youth and culture ambassador, and humanitarian. He has a PhD in Literature from Benue State University and an MA in Creative Writing from Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge. He is the Creative Director of Omniinkus, a media, publishing and bookstore company. He is the founding editor of JOBB! (Journal of the Beautiful and Brutal!), a literary, arts, and cultural journal dedicated to showcasing Africa’s creative talents. He is also the Director of Idumaese Alao Foundation which embarks on humanitarian projects and organises the annual Idumaese Alao Prize for Literature. His creative and critical-scholarly works have appeared in reputable national and international journals, magazines, awards, and anthologies. He currently lectures in the Department of English, Federal University Gashua, and serves as the Editorial Secretary of Bade Journal of Arts (BAJA).
Below are excerpts from the poetry collection (#SOTT):
