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Sat 02 Feb 2007Sweet secret of survivalFiction: Mamo and LaMamo are twin brothers living in the small Nigerian village of Keti. The two boys are perfect complements. LaMamo is bold, reckless, extroverted, physically robust. He is the talker. Mamo, born with sickle-cell anaemia, is physically weak and introverted, intelligent, rational and a good listener.Despite their differences, the brothers share the same dream - to escape from Keti and their vain and domineering father. (Their mother died giving birth to them.) They also dream of achieving immortality through fame as soldiers. For Mamo, the issue of immortality is all the more pressing, as he believes he will die of his disease before he is out of his teens. But when LaMamo leaves Keti for the battlefields of Africa, Mamo is too ill to follow.