What Is In A Biography?

I never thought my life was worth writing about. What is there to write about a bare-footed child in an oversized second-hand singlet with several rat-ridden holes? I am not an ace footballer, not a famous actor, and not from a famous family. I’m not the son of a millionaire or a powerful politician, but the son of a peasant farmer in a remote African village. You must be brave to even contemplate writing about yourself! I could hear my mind telling me.

Everyone has a story to tell. No one is an accident of history. Unfortunately, many of us think we have nothing to say or write about ourselves. We feel we’re nobody just because we have not had national honours or we are not famous athletes, footballers or musicians. We don’t feel our life story is worth writing about since we’re unknown to the wider world.

A good biography is a true history, revealing everything about a person. It’s a true revelation to the good and bad, and the ups and downs of the person’s life with nothing hidden. It is like watching a good movie in which all the plots come together as the whole story.

Many people write only about their achievements, highlighting their skills and personal efforts. Of course, I enjoy reading about heroic actions and incredible accomplishments. It fascinates me to read stories of great men and women who have beaten the odds. You do not choose your parents. You have no control over your gender, colour or place of birth. And you can’t make your own decision, at least at the beginning of your life, about your religious belief.

What’s there to read in the story of an African boy who sucked his mother’s breasts for three years, fed on pap and cassava rather than Lactogen or Cerelac? How did he escape the flanges of vipers as he trod the bushes barefooted, and the claws of tigers as he chased the games in the wood? How did he survive the poisonous sting of a fish? How did he stand up to all the tribal and racial discrimination? How did he find his way through a system of unequal educational opportunities? How did he survive in the community where your colour clouds your educational and professional excellence? And how was he able to travel the rough and winding road to success?

I believe no one comes into one’s life as an accident, even those people who do bad things to you. There are people who are obvious Angels, doing all things in your favour. But even those who seem to be thorns along your path are there for some purpose. These purposes may not be clear to you at the time. But when you look back, it makes sense. They make you see life differently, providing the opportunity to learn valuable life skills.

A biographical account that’s well written, authentic, and one that deepens one’s faith is worth reading. The one that is written by an ordinary person full of fun, but also at times brings tears to your eyes, as well as packed with life skills. That’s what you find in Angels Along My Path, a highly rated autobiography of an African surgeon telling of the amazing and inspirational life of an ordinary person for all people, young and old.