Toheeb Dele Balogun to Premiere "Algodrithm, the Sacred Book" in...

By Joy Eke 

Toheeb Dele Balogun

Lagos-based creative strategist Toheeb Dele Balogun is turning his newest book into something closer to theatre than a reading. On October 17. At the J. Randle Centre in Onikan, Lagos, Nigeria, he will unveil Algodrithm, the Sacred Book, a satirical work of micro-fiction that imagines social media as a self-made deity that creates, judges, rewards, and punishes its followers much like a religion would.

 The book is written in a liturgical, first-person voice and structured like scripture, opening with the god Algodrithm's creation of the world before splintering into dozens of short, biting stories about the people who live under its influence. The satire is rooted specifically in Nigerian social, political and religious life, using humour to probe how deeply digital platforms have reshaped the way people think and behave.

Rather than a standard launch with readings and a signing table, the event will unfold as an immersive live experience blending literature, theatre and visual art. Guests can expect staged performances, an interactive exhibition and a set of symbolic "rituals" pulled straight from the book's invented mythology, an attempt, as Dele Balogun frames it, to let the audience feel the satire rather than simply read it.

The project builds on his earlier collection, Don't Tell These Stories, roughly seventy pieces of flash fiction released in 2024 that drew public endorsement from figures including Nike Davies-Okundaye, Don Jazzy and D'banj. Dele Balogun has spoken about wanting to adapt literature to a generation with shrinking attention spans, arguing that storytelling has to evolve in form if it wants to keep shaping culture the way it once did.

Beyond his writing, Dele Balogun is a partner at The Hook Creative Agency and founder of the Awapikin Initiative, a foundation focused on child education reform and youth development across Nigeria and Africa. A share of proceeds from the book's premium tiers will go toward the initiative's programs. Details for pre-ordering a copy Algodrithm will be announced closer to the launch date in October, 2026.