Pied Piper of Hamelin. The skillful placing of word against word is what builds the masterpiece and turns a story into a memorable work of art. I often tell people how fascinated I was with Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things. But while I have absolutely no recollection of the plot, I still remember how struck I was by her use of words. Her writing was pure art." - Meaning and context.">
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Onyinye Dike, ‘Everyone Can Tell a Story’, The Republic, July 14, 2023.
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Everyone can tell a story, but the skillful use of words is what I usually find captivating when reading a piece. The imagery. The alliteration. The emotion. The quotable quotes. Think Shakespeare. Think the Pied Piper of Hamelin. The skillful placing of word against word is what builds the masterpiece and turns a story into a memorable work of art. I often tell people how fascinated I was with Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things. But while I have absolutely no recollection of the plot, I still remember how struck I was by her use of words. Her writing was pure art.

— Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Everyone can tell a story, but the skillful use of words is what I usually find captivating when reading a piece. The imagery. The alliteration. The emotion. The quotable quotes. Think Shakespeare. Think the Pied Piper of Hamelin. The skillful placing of word against word is what builds the masterpiece and turns a story into a memorable work of art. I often tell people how fascinated I was with Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things. But while I have absolutely no recollection of the plot, I still remember how struck I was by her use of words. Her writing was pure art." in the context of "Onyinye Dike, ‘Everyone Can Tell a Story’, The Republic, July 14, 2023." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 19, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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#Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani#skillful#story#words#tell#what#word#art#alliteration#recollection#captivating#shakespeare

About Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani

Adaobi Tricia Obinne Nwaubani (born in 1976) is a Nigerian novelist, humorist, essayist and journalist. In the year 2009, I Do Not Come To You by Chance was recognized by the Washington Post group as one of the best books of the year and went on to win the African First Book Category in the Commonwealth Writers Prize 2010 and even secured her a Betty Trask First Book award. She ventured into Young Adult Fiction when she cue to publication Buried Beneath the Baobab Tree, a novel crafted from the real-life journeys of girls held captive by Boko Haram. The book was released in September 2018 after it was acquired by HarperCollins. The book was awarded the 2018 Raven Award for Excellence in Arts and Entertainment and was also recognized as among the ALA best young adult fiction. The books was also selected as a Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2019.