Book Reviews (African Lit.)

The Woman Next Door by Yewande Omotoso

The Woman Next Door is brilliant and drenched in macabre.

Two old women, one black and recently widowed, the other white and ignorantly racist, have lived as sworn enemies in an affluent suburb in Cape Town for decades. Hortensia James is a native of Barbados, with a successful career as a designer behind her, and a wealth of hurt and regret bubbling deep inside her. Marion Agostino is estranged from her four children, and has refused to see how her privilege as a white woman growing up in apartheid South Africa put millions of others at a disadvantage. An accident brings the two together under the same roof and what ensues is a well-needed, yet unwelcome, catharsis.

Omotoso writes like no other, in her ability to tackle very disturbing topics so light-heartedly, pulling you, the reader, deeper and deeper into the narrative until you stop and wonder just how you got there. It’s a good book. I had to read it in short bursts but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It’s an 8 out of 10 from me.

Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah 

Born A Crime is absolutely brilliant.

Noah is not just funny on stage or in front of a camera; I found myself laughing out loud in many parts reading the book. Noah walks us through his upbringing; raised by a single, strong-willed mother – from whom we can assume he got his sense of humour. Noah writes about the ills of being raised poor and mixed race at a time apartheid was coming to an end; he writes about the complexities and bitterness resulting from the racism which plagues his country; of fanatical, almost comical, Christianity; of growing up with an abusive stepfather; of his mischievous adventures as a troublesome youth; of the entrepreneurship opportunities he dabbled in; of his misadventures in young 'love'. It’s a wholesome, delicious book.

The only thing I wish is that Noah had spent more time telling us about his transition from a business-minded teen out of school and hanging out in a ghetto outside Johannesburg, to becoming one of Africa’s greatest comedians (if not the greatest, if you ask me). He scraped the surface of the topic – talking about DJing at parties and hosting TV and radio shows – but we didn’t get the full gist (which might be okay since the book is about stories from his childhood and not his adult life).  I guess I’ll be holding my breath for the sequel to find out.

It’s a 8.5 out of 10 from me.

Blackass by A. Igoni Barrett

Blackass tells the tale of Furo Wariboko, a frustrated young man in the thickets of job-hunting in Nigeria’s tough labour market, who wakes up one morning and discovers that, over night, he has become a white man with a black ass. We journey with Furo over the next twenty-five days as he lives the ‘expat life’, meeting a host of characters along the way.

Blackass was painfully boring to read. Barrett tried too hard to tell a story; the story about what it must be like to experience Lagos as a white man. The book felt as though it was written for an international audience and not for Nigerians who actually live in and know Nigeria; the author took too much time explaining the Nigerian experience – Lagos traffic, well-known malls, restaurants and hotels in the country, describing national delicacies, the Nigerian manner of speaking and expressions, the Nigerian university experience etc. 

To be frank, reading the book was annoying and the narratives were unnecessarily long, becoming dull and pedantic. Not to mention that I thoroughly disliked Furo's character – a truly selfish and horrible human being (who I hope, to Igoni, does not represent the average Nigerian, because I would feel very insulted). I really don’t know what all the hype about this book was; I’m glad I’ve finished reading it and can move on to brighter, well-written literature.

I give it a 2 out of 10.

Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun by Sarah Ladipo Manyika

What I love about this book is how original it is. And already, starting a book review like this, it feels as though I will have nothing critical to say about it, but Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun really is unlike anything I have ever read.

Manyika tells the story of Dr. Morayo Da Silva, a seventy-five year old Nigerian woman living in sunny San Francisco. She’s a jovial, retired literature professor with a difficult past – the loss of her mother, divorce, infidelity, sexual assault. Manyika takes us on a journey as we experience the life, loneliness and small joys of Morayo.

What I (also) loved about the book is what Manyika does with literature; she wove the stories of dozens of real-life books and authors so beautifully into the narrative, teaching me a lot as I went along. This is the first book by Manyika I have read, and it will most certainly not be the last.

It’s a 8.5 out of 10 from me.

Emeka by Fredrick Forsyth

Emeka is the biography of Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, general and leader of the nation of Biafra, written by English author, Fredrick Forsyth.

Forsyth takes us through the childhood, young adulthood, military life and eventual exile of the famous Ojukwu; taking us through the turmoil and series of unfortunate events which led to the Biafra secession from Nigeria, and eventual war, in 1967. We see Ojukwu as a lively young man, humourous and good-natured; we see him as a disciplined military officer, as a man determined to carve a path for himself despite his father’s wealth and affluence. I found  myself liking Ojukwu, admiring his patriotism and his love for Nigeria.

Ordinarily, non-fiction literature is not my niche, so it took me a little while to get into the swing of the book. More than that, however, I found Forsyth’s narrative one-sided, where he sang the praises of Ojukwu while painting the Nigerian side with disdain and harsh criticisms. While the book gave me an insight into Ojukwu’s life, strengths and victories in a way I never knew existed, I could not help but find it a biased account of events. Of course, it is not far-fetched to imagine that the subject of a biography would want to paint him/herself in the most favourable light, but one could tell that Forsyth's friendship with Ojukwu tainted the work significantly. For example, the last chapter of the book (Chapter 18) is entirely dedicated to Forsyth telling us about the greatness of Ojukwu, whom he believes "has qualities that set him aside, not simply within a personal relationship, but among other men, and most of all among other Africans" (p.138).

It’s a 5.5 out of 10 for me.

Bomboy by Yewande Omotoso

It’s a little difficult to write this review because Bomboy is like no other novel I have read. It has elements of the supernatural, the spiritual and superstitions; it tells of the effects mental health, sickness, lack and abuse can have on families.

We follow the life of Leke, a young man who doubles as an IT programmer during the day and a kleptomaniac at night. Since his adoptive mother’s death when he was a boy, life took on an even lesser meaning and he navigates (and we with him) through his days; avoiding his adoptive father, working, taking long walks, moping around his garage-flat and the mall where he stakes out his victims.

I took me a while to get into the swing of the novel but when I did, I could not put it down. I wish Omotoso (or her editor) had taken more care with the placements of punctuation and quotation marks, but other than that, it was brilliant.

It’s a 7 out of 10 for me.

News from Home by Sefi Atta

In News from Home, Atta showcases what, to me, is her finest work. In the collection of ten short stories, we meet funny, engaging, some down-on-their-luck, characters and Sefi is deftly able to narrate the tales of illegal immigration, extra-marital affairs, homosexuality, religion, romance in a way that keeps you immersed in the literature.

We meet characters living in Zamfara, in Mississippi, in London, and in between. Already, I loved Atta, after reading three of her other novels (reviewed below) – but now, now truly I’m head over heels. My favourite story has to be Yahoo Yahoo, told through the eyes of a 12-year-old boy called Idowu, whose parents are quirky and rife with emotional baggage. What Atta gives you are human characters that will make you laugh and sigh.

It is an 8 out of 10 for me.


Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe 

Set in colonial Nigeria (Igbo land) the novel tells the story of Ezeulu, the chief priest of Ulu (a god) in the village of Umuaro. Ezeulu is a headstrong man whose arrogance eventually leads to his detriment.

There were several subplots to the story and it had many characters. Achebe was detailed in explaining pre-colonial Igbo traditions and customs, at times coming across as too deliberate and tedious, sucking the life out of the story. I also found that the plentiful characters crammed the story and it was often difficult keeping track of the crux.

The book actually took me a year to finish; I had to keep breaking it up with something more lively and engaging. So far, this is my least favourite Achebe book. I rate it 3 over 10.

Swallow by Sefi Atta

In Swallow, Sefi Atta tells the tale of Tolani Alao, a young woman who resides in Lagos in the 80s, grudgingly partaking in the hustle and bustle of the city because she has to make a living and send money to her mother back home. Tolani’s life takes a hit when she and her borderline-nutcase of a flat mate, Rose, lose their jobs within weeks of each other and are faced with a chance to make quick money.

What Atta does in Swallow is bring to the forefront issues beleaguering African women; the pressure to get married, the vulnerability to sexual harassment and the arrogance of flagrant predators, the ravenous nature of poverty.

In parts of the book, I found the dual-narrative style (told in parts by Tolani and in other parts by her mother, Arike) dull; the descriptive sometimes went on for too long and became bland – the same issue I had with A Bit of Difference (reviewed below). Atta’s books often end abruptly, leaving the reader with unanswered questions and wonderings; her books never end the way you wish they would – Swallow was no difference in this respect.

I rate the book 4 over 10.

Born on a Tuesday by Elnathan John 

 In his debut novel, John slays. A tragic and beautiful novel, Born on a Tuesday narrates, in first person, the story of Dantala, an Almajirai sent by his poor parents to a Quranic school in Bayan Layi – a fictional town in northern Nigeria. Post-election violence drives Dantala back to Sokoto, the land of his birth, where he comes under the tutelage of the kind-hearted Sheikh Jamal.

 There were parts in the book where I laughed out loud at the sheer humour of it; and other parts where the words on the pages left me silent. John does well in capturing the fate of the desolate and of the Almajirai; he does well in offering hope even within absolute desolation. John’s writing is simple and poignant. I cannot wait for his next novel.

 It’s an 8 over 10 for me.




The Education of a British-Protected Child by Chinua Achebe 

What Achebe does in this collection of 16 essays is to explain to the reader, intentionally and clearly, his views on a number of issues, namely; writing in the English language in African Literature (why English is necessary and not to be frown upon as ‘the language of the colonizers’); the overwhelming bias in the way the West has come to view Africa; the tragedy of the Biafra War; the complexity that is African politics and Western meddling etc.

Achebe saves his puncher for the last where, in the final essay of the book, Africa Is People, he gives a compelling argument about the greed of the rich and the suffering of the poor. Achebe effectively tells his side of the story in this book and, if I could choose a central theme to the book – which there really isn’t because he discusses a wealth of things – I would say it truly is the education of Achebe, which he has so kindly shared.

It is a riveting read which also opened my eyes to a range of other literary giants, increasing my appetite for their work: Langston Hughes, James Baldwin, WEB DuBois, Nuruddin Farah.

I rate the book 7 over 10 which, to be honest, is a biased rating. It’s not an 8 only because, at heart, I’m a fiction-lover and sometimes found the flow of the book lecture-like.














Say You’re One of Them by Uwem Akpan

Akpan creates a masterpiece out of this book, which is a compilation of five short stories that span the breadth of Africa; set in Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Benin, and told through the eyes of children.

It is heart-wrenching and the reader is drawn into the terrifying world that these children find themselves in, each caught in brutal conflict that has ravaged (and continues to ravage) Africa; civil war, the plight of the refugee, poverty, religious intolerance, human trafficking.

Akpan’s writing is simple, easy to understand, easy to feel. I read it two years ago and, like any good book, it has stuck with me. The sadness I felt reading it has stayed with me.

I rate it 8 over 10.


A Bit of Difference by Sefi Atta

Atta's third novel (after Everything Good Will Come -- reviewed below -- and Swallow) tells the tale of Deola Bello, an unmarried Nigerian woman dangerously approaching 40 who lives in London. She is internally dissatisfied living as an expatriate and feels she is locked in a 'system' that's built to keep her down.

Through the course of the novel, we meet Deola's eccentric friends and semi-dysfunctional family back home in Lagos, and watch Deola's life nearly spiral out of control when she meets the enigmatic Wale.

Atta does well in painting a picture of the perspectives, cognizance and idiosyncrasies of Nigerians who grew up in the 1960s, when Nigeria was fresh out of independence, when it was drastically different to what it is today. At times, however, I felt Atta was trying too hard to tell a story, going off into long bursts of narratives which sometimes seemed ill-placed and unnecessary. In addition -- and this might be Atta's signature -- the novel seemed to end too abruptly. I rate it 6 over 10.

A Man of the People by Chinua Achebe

This book is hilarious and entertaining, depicting the life of a young teacher, Odili, who falls into romantic and political mishap when a politician he didn't really care for in the beginning (but found a way to win Odili's affections), Nanga, turns against him.

Achebe humorously tells the tale of how Nigeria's (although he does not mention the name of the country the novel is set in) political scene has become lackadaisical, filled with semi-educated and uncultured opportunists, who seem to have stumbled upon a chance to lead a nation.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and laughed out loud in some parts -- and perhaps I laughed so loud in an attempt to mask the reality that Nigeria is still at this place, nearly three decades after the book was first published in 1966.

Needless to say, Achebe was a gem. I rate this book 8 over 10.

Daughters Who Walk This Path by Yejide Kilanko

I struggled through the greater part of this book because I felt Kilanko lifted Atta's template for Everything Good Will Come. The story revolves around a female protagonist's (Motunrayo) coming of age and the same themes in Atta's book are evident; teenage pregnancy, rape, abortion, an enviable friendship between two girls that lasts a life time, the complexities of marriage.

As with Atta's book, we watch the protagonist grow from child to woman to wife to mother. I felt there was barely anything spectacular about Kilanko's writing; I found it dull and unimaginative. She also failed (most especially in the way her characters spoke -- their choice of words) to transport me to a Nigeria set in the 90s.

I rate this book 3 over 10.



Foreign Gods Inc. by Okey Ndibe

Foreign Gods Inc. tells the tale of Ike, an over-educated middle-aged Nigerian man who drives a taxi in New York, loathes and adores America in the same breath and has decided -- in an attempt to alleviate the debt he has incurred over the years, especially after a bitter divorce -- to steal a war deity from his home town in Nigeria and sell it to a gallery for a handsome price.

I found the novel dry and sluggish. Ndibe's writing style is tedious, drawn-out, almost too detailed; often times one scene lasts several chapters, making it pedantic and tiresome. The plot took so long to pick up and when it finally did I was ready to put the book down, out of boredom, especially because I disliked the protagonist, who I found mean-spirited and pathetic.

Honestly, I don't know what all the hype about this book is. It's a 4 over 10 from me.

Everything Good Will Come by Sefi Atta

This novel takes a look at Nigeria's volatile political atmosphere (and the collateral damage it has incurred on family units), feminism and relationships from the point of view of Enitan, a young girl who matures into a mother through the course of the book.

Enitan maneuvers through life, taking on the effects of her parents' unstable marriage, of the rape of her best friend, of a devastating heartbreak, each circumstance building up to an ultimate decision.

Everything Good Will Come is riveting, beautifully written, tragic, but leaves the reader with a glimmer of hope. I fell completely in love with Atta reading this book. I rate it 8 over 10.