Nigerian novelist Omotoso delineates the contrast between the country's two most widely read writers, describing Wole Soyinka as a playful imagist steeped in the myth and magic of his Yoruba culture, and Chinua Achebe as expressing internalized Igbo cultural traditions. He discusses their differences in style, background, and vision within the context and contradictions of pan-African, Nigerian nation-state, and ethnic national agendas. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR