Pictures from the public presentation of the book, 'Giants of History'

On Tuesday Aprill 22, at the Civic Centre, VI, Lagos,  Mr. Lateef Ibirogba (the Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Lagos State) presented to the public his book titled “Giants of History: The Making of Our World” as well as an accompanying card game “The Game of Giants”.

In attendance at the event were the governors of Lagos and Osun States, along with representatives from other states in the south west of Nigeria. There were a couple of senators from the northern part of the country as well, and a number of people from the publishing and literary professions. More on the book here. Continue...

 The card game was invented to help students and all other interested history buffs to interact with the book and learn more about great people living and dead.

Mr Pascal Diozie, the chairman of the occasion, referred to Giants of History as a serious book which will add a lot of value to the young population. The Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, who was the Special Guest of Honour at the launch, commended the author for a job well done. He also urged Nigerians to take up the reading culture again, adding that the dearth of books about public service in our libraries is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. He encouraged people to buy the work.

Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the governor of Osun State, was the keynote speaker for the day. He gave glowing remarks on the book and congratulated the author for a job well done. The Honourable Commissioners for Information from Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti and Edo were also in attendance as representatives of their governors.

Speaking as the book reviewer, Barrister Tade Ipadeola (winner of the Nigerian Prize for Literature, 2013) praised the book as one that makes history relevant again. He declared his support for the school of thought that history books serve to motivate young ones to emulate great men and women of preceding generations rather than intimidating them. Also in attendance was the director of Corona School, Agbara, Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo, whose speech commended the author for writing the book, and for inviting her to the occasion without having met her before. It shows a recognition of the role of teachers in society, she said.

The book and the card games will be available in physical bookstores but can be purchased for now at www.digitalbooks.com.ng (The website for the game itself is www.thegameofgiants.com). All attendees at the launch went home with free copies of the innovative card game, and were able to buy copies of the book and also get them signed by the author.

Here are pictures showing guests that include the Chairman of MTN Nigeria, Mr. Pascal Dozie (Chairman of the Occasion), Mr. Babatunde Raji Fasola (Governor of Lagos State), Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (Governor of Osun State), Mr. Lateef Ibirogba (author), Tade Ipadeola (reviewer) Mr. Louis Odion, Mr. Kola Tubosun, Prince Gbade Lana, among many others.