Title: The Capstone Saga: The First Shall Be the Last and the Last Shall Be the First
Author: Walter Efe Tete
Publisher: Trafford Publishing
ISBN: 9781426971426
Pages: 213
Genre: Adventure & Drama
Reviewed by: Gabriella Harrison
Hollywood Book Reviews
Walter Efe Tete’s adventurous and drama-filled novel, The Capstone Saga, narrates the rags-to-riches story of Scotty Stone. Scotty is born into the polygamous home of Chief Eyikemi in Erho village. Unfortunately, his mother dies when he is just a little boy, leaving him and his siblings to endure a harsh upbringing in which they are treated like trash by their stepmothers and step-siblings. Everything looks bleak until he is admitted into the famous Urhobo College Effurun to further his education. This requires him to leave his little brother Ossai behind, which puts the two siblings through a lot of anguish. Scotty promises to work hard, so he can eventually fend for his brother and liberate them from their wretched situation. Fortunately for them, he makes good on his promises, and their circumstances improve. However, he soon decides to immigrate to the United States in search of greener pastures.
Upon his arrival, he discovers the United States isn’t the bed of roses he had been led to believe. He has to work very hard to make something of himself. After multiple nerve-wracking tries, Scotty’s fortune improves, and he is finally able to help his family. The book is split into two parts. The first part focuses on his background and his battle to gain financial freedom. The second part focuses on his political ambitions in the United States and his home country of Nigeria. There are many lessons to be learned from Scotty’s trials and travails. His story teaches the importance of perseverance and hard work amid multiple failures and injustices. It also shows the importance of helping others and giving back to society.
I like how detailed the book is and that it shows a chronological progression of events in Scotty’s life – from his birth to his political success. The book’s table of content also made it easy for me to navigate the book and refresh my memory of previous events. It is a well-rounded narration that highlights his moments of triumph as well as the lowest points in his life. It also shows moments when he was unjust and the mistakes he made in his life, how he learned from them, and how they influenced him to do better.
Impressively, the narration wraps up on a satisfying note while also building anticipation for the Capstone trilogy, in which many interesting questions about Scotty’s fate will be answered.