Yinka Olatunbosun
In his debut literary offering titled, Jacob Larry in Middle School, an eleven year old writer, Amobi Miracle Moses Eche unleashes an intriguing story with pulsating accounts that are reminiscent of many detective series on television or streaming sites. Perhaps, a reader wouldn’t-at first- anticipate that level of intricate plot development from a first time writer; still the compelling story is undoubtedly a natural page turner.
The protagonist in the crime story, Jacob Larry is at crossroads with the law. Without credible evidence, an intruder may get away with crime. But would he? Young Eche became fascinated by creative writing as a movie buff and a student in New Jersey, USA where he earned an orange belt in the martial art. As a young lad who hungers for knowledge, Eche’s varied personal experiences account for his rich and eclectic vocabulary in this book run through tales around the criminal justice system with the ease of a new luxury car.
From being given a nudge by the pastor at the church to committing four months into intensive writing, the young writer has been able to create a masterpiece in children’s literature from a world of archetypal characters sometimes drawn from real life or imagined. Through the eyes of a middle schooler, he shows how young people encounter challenges. For him, creativity does not function in the absence of real life events whether captured in movies or in lyrics.
In creating a work that speaks to the crime in America, Eche inadvertently contributes to the conversation around concerns about burglary. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), burglary happens every 30 minutes in the United States of America. Hence, it is not out of place that the writer situates the characters of his book within the context of a social reality of public concern.
For him, the book is not a fault finding tool, rather it is a mirror reflecting the imperfect nature of the criminal justice system with the aim to draw relevant authorities to rethinking the process that lead many innocent people behind bars. To be sure, miscarriage of justice has been the thematic preoccupation of classics such as The Central Park Five by Sarah Burns, Atonement by Ian McEwan, Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson and To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Indeed, Eche breathes a new life into children’s literature with this creative work that appeals to teenagers and young adults.
