“Uncaged: Breaking free from the Chain of Addiction,” was written by Ojewola Olawale and published in 2025 by Best Brain Initiative for Human Development. The prose fiction shows the devastating effects and consequences of substance abuse and addiction on individuals, friendships, families, and the society at large. The work also powerfully shows how dogged resilience and support can help in restoring addicts, making them attain their dreams in life. The work is a powerful inspiration for those who have been entangled in the snare of addiction.
In this work, we are introduced to two friends, Olawale and Abiola, as fate brings them together on their first day in school. Olawale comes from a wealthy family, and Abiola from a humble family of hardworking parents.
These two boys, the protagonists in the novel, are lovers of adventure and storytelling. Olawale is kind and compassionate, while Abiola is imaginative and creative. Theirs is a friendship made to transcend primary school. They are now grown and hardy, and full of aspirations for themselves and lofty dreams for society.
The diversities of their backgrounds allow both Abiola and Olawale to complement each other. But their admission into the university poses a new level of challenge to their friendship. Academic pressures and social dynamics of higher education keep them apart. This becomes more pronounced with the entry of Tunde into the life of Olawale. Tunde is a secondary school mate but their paths cross again in the university. Tunde is described as someone who “moved with a different crowd, one that frequented exclusive nightclubs and private parties in the affluent parts of town.”
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The book Uncaged by Olawale Ojewola discusses how unbridled freedom and one moment apart from your known regular circle of friends can change your life and drag you back. Such was Olawale’s reunion with Tunde. So, soon after, Tunde invites Olawale to a weekend getaway party somewhere in town. There and then, Olawale is introduced to a clique of friends who describe themselves as wealthy heirs, and engage in taking hard substances. Olawale here descends into a wild life propped up by hard drugs and orgies.
And that is how his lifestyle takes a new turn, and he now has to tell lies upon lies in order to get money from his parents to fund his new lifestyle.
As if that is not enough, Olawale attains new heights to fund his new lifestyle. He uses different unwholesome tricks to fan money out of unsuspecting victims. But gradually, his academic life suffers. Olawale, a once-promising medical student, now struggles to catch up with assignments and class attendance. In short, Olawale has now descended into full-blown addiction: his very existence is now dependent on drugs.
In the book Uncaged, the consequence of stubborn pride is conspicuously placed before us. Olawale Adeyemi refuses to yield to offer of help, and faces an uncertain future as he travels down the alley. The book also gives us a sorry peep into the ghastly deterioration that defines the life of young people (including even the older ones) who dabble into the drugs. Drug addiction does not just take one’s mind, it twists the mind, draws the person away from genuine friends and caring loved ones. Indeed, in the long run, drug addiction takes away from you what it promises to give you!
But the story of Olawale and Abiola is not that of doom and gloom. It is also a story of resilience and resolve to help a friend sucked up in a life of abandon. Help comes finally for Olawale, as it is available for all drug addicts who are able to retrace their steps. Also, the life of Abiola as an epitome of resilience, hard work and dedication shines forth, projecting him as a worthy role model with so much influence.
This 50-page work Uncaged is a statement on hope. Hope that no matter what has happened to a person swallowed by drug addiction, that person can still heal and overcome it. It also posits that addiction is a societal issue that can be overcome with collective effort and advocacy.
In 10 chapters and an epilogue, Ojewola Olawale powerfully tells the story of how hope, resilience, and hard work can turn a straying life of substance abuse and addiction into a sound, clear-minded visionary. And it is an emotion-laden and didactic story well told in easy to read English for the enjoyment of all people, young and old.
. Olatunbosun is a broadcast journalist, fact-checker and book reviewer at Splash FM 105.5, Ibadan. He can be reached via 08023517565 (SMS & WhatsApp only) and email molatunbosun@splashfm1055.com.
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