Philanthropist and public administrator, Tolu Ibitola, has debuted his first book, a memoir titled Sprouting: A Biography of My Mind.
Chief of Staff to the Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi and the second youngest to hold such office in the country, Ibitola—who recently celebrated his 40th birthday—gives readers a glimpse into the inner workings of his mind, sharing life lessons he has learned in his four-decade-long sojourn.
Sprouting: A Biography of My Mind is a personal journal-esque book that explores a variety of relatable themes like the value of staying prepared at all times, the journey of self-discovery, the shattering pain of loss, and several others. With a distinctive style of story-telling laced with humour, the thirteen-chapter book inspires tenacity, optimism, courage, creativity and positivity.
In the words of Ibitola: “Sprouting: A Biography of My Mind is me taking stock and notes of a journey that has been interesting as much as it has been challenging. It is a book of stock-taking and appraisal, and a note on how a dreamer found his way to government through providence and the lessons he, meaning I, have come to.”
“It is an attempt to make sense of the journey and, in the process, add a page to the body of information that is strongly lacking (compared to what is available in developed nations, that is); per adventure some other wayfarer would lend himself the advantage of learning from my experiences as little as they may be.”
The first-time author also stated: “I wrote this book with the hope that I would be able to provide a view of politics and governance from the mind of a younger person. To shine a little light from a small torch in the hands of younger generation and hopefully be an example of what we can achieve as we participate in the future and the present that belongs to us.”
