The autobiography of Lolo Betty Patricia Mgbenwelu, an 83-year-old Jamaica-born matriarch whose life has spanned continents, cultures, and one of the 20th century’s most devastating conflicts, was launched to widespread acclaim at the prestigious Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, last month.

Titled Echoes of Survival, the memoir chronicles Lolo Patricia’s extraordinary journey from her childhood in Kingston, Jamaica, through her fateful marriage that transplanted her into 1960s Nigeria, and into the crucible of the Nigerian-Biafran Civil War — experienced not as a soldier or politician, but as a Caribbean civilian mother fighting to keep her family alive.

The Jamaican High Commissioner to Nigeria, Lincoln C. Downer, served as special guest of honour at the launch and delivered remarks that drew sustained applause from the distinguished gathering.