Odera: An Orphan's Tale

By Nkem DenChukwu

My big brother, Eto, is 26. Me, I am 15 years old. He and I love to explore; and each day is a brand new adventure for us. We loved running through the woods and going to that part of the woods where The Forbidden Lake is located. Every time we would go to the Lake, it always felt like the very first time we discovered it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 2, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496941664

Nkem DenChukwu

Nkem DenChukwu, the winner of the 2019 Inaugural and 2020 Literary Awards by the Houston Public Library Foundation - Reader's Choice,was born on July 4. She loves to write inspirational books, especially for the younger generations. Adults also love to read her books, and areinspired by them too. Since 2012, Nkem has written and published eleven books that include Zoe, Odera: An Orphan's Tale, Alley-Gators:The bullies of Poughkeepsie, About A Boy, See Me Don't Judge Me, The Cow Without A Tail, Put Me In Your Shoes, Be My Eyes, Here on Earth, and Tribal Echoes. She has also edited several books. She loves to use her voice and writing to educate, inspire, inform, nurture, and empower the younger generations because they are the future. Her comments have been published five times in Oprah Winfrey Magazine between 2014 and 2020. Nkem is a film producer, and also loves taking still photographs of alligators, birds, squirrels, skeletal trees, the sunrise and sunsets, the moon, and people. Her next books to be published are When Hearts Touch, The House Without Christmas, and Do Not Tell. She is currently working with a group of kids across America on a summer book project. Nkem lives in Texas with her family. All her books are sold on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Walmart, Target, and other online bookstores. Want signed copies? Please visit www.nkemdenchukwu.com for updates on upcoming books.

Book preview

HOW IT ALL STARTED…

M y big brother, Eto, is 26. Me, I am 15 years old. He and I love to explore; and each day is a brand new adventure for us. We loved running through the woods and going to that part of the woods where The Forbidden Lake is located. Every time we would go to the Lake, it always felt like the very first time we discovered it.

We’d get up in the morning and hurry through our chores. We wanted to be finished with our work before the sun rose to shine its warming rays to heat the air and paint wondrous smiles all across the skies.

We had to make up our beds, rolling up the mats we slept on; they were made from bamboo leaves. Then we had to do the dishes and sweep up the hut we called home.

Anyway, this particular morning was…oh so beautiful! Eto and I had so much planned for the day and with our chores completed, we dashed out of the house at a run.

Eto would sing as we made our way down the stony, but well beaten path. He always led the way. I followed close behind humming a familiar song he had taught me. I carried my bucket in my right hand and always wrapped around my waist was my blanket.

Wait…

I suppose I should share something else with you before I go any further. You are probably wondering about a couple of things: My mother, the blanket, and my father. Right?

My mother died of pneumonia a few weeks after I was born. I never got to know her or the chance to love her. The blanket, well… it is the same blanket my mother used to swaddle me in. To me, it is so special. It’s like being wrapped in her loving arms. As for my father, for a long time, I wondered about him too. But I have my big brother, Eto, who was only 11 years old when our mother died. I love my big brother! He takes good care of me.

Okay, back to my story…

The forest was a stone’s throw from our tiny hut and The Forbidden Lake a hop and jump from the tall mango tree where we sat to catch our breaths.

Most mornings, the dew-laden leaves shined from the rays of sunlight beaming through the openings in the canopy of the