Hilda Baci is showing that there is more to influencing than food, fashion and viral moments.
The Nigerian chef and entrepreneur has turned her attention to books, using her platform to encourage Nigerians to read while spotlighting the works of Nigerian author Adesuwa O’man Nwokedi.
It is a small gesture, but an interesting one at a time when reading is increasingly competing with short-form videos, endless scrolling and the pressure to consume everything in seconds.
Hilda's book moment puts the spotlight on Adesuwa O’man Nwokedi, a Nigerian author known for contemporary fiction and romance. Her catalogue includes titles such as Adanna and the Ginika’s Bridesmaids series, while her newer work Moroti Wants a Virgo has also featured in book conversations in Nigeria.
There is something particularly interesting about seeing a personality with Hilda's reach promote books.
People who may not ordinarily follow literary conversations are more likely to encounter a book when it appears in the hands of someone they already follow.
And that is increasingly becoming part of how books find readers.
A 2026 Brittle Paper discussion on Nigeria's literary ecosystem noted the growing influence of book influencers and social-media personalities in getting books into public conversations and encouraging people to pick them up.
A celebrity posting a book does something traditional book advertising may struggle to do: it places literature inside the everyday social-media feed.
Suddenly, someone who came online to see Hilda Baci may discover an author they have never read.
The timing is significant because efforts to rebuild reading culture in Nigeria increasingly recognise that social media does not have to be the enemy of books.
The #WhenWeRead campaign, for instance, has used public figures including Hilda Baci and Enioluwa Adeoluwa to encourage reading and reportedly distributed thousands of books.
The idea is simple: if people are already looking at their phones, perhaps the phone can be where they first discover the book.
Perhaps reading culture doesn't always need another lecture about how “young people don't read anymore.”
Maybe it needs people they actually watch to make reading look interesting again.
Hilda Baci picking up an Adesuwa O’man Nwokedi book is a reminder that influence can move attention in more than one direction.
You can influence people to buy a meal.
You can also influence them to open a book.
And honestly, we need more of the second one.
What Nigerian book would you recommend Hilda Baci read next?
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