Author Kwei Quartey starts off with what seems to be a routine missing persons case in a small private investigations office in Accra, Ghana. The pareAuthor Kwei Quartey starts off with what seems to be a routine missing persons case in a small private investigations office in Accra, Ghana. The parents of an 18 year old were desperate to find their daughter who left Nigeria with a man whom they did not trust. Not too far into this ordinary beginning, a more gripping story unfolds.
Those who have not been there, through this book will learn something of the difference life in Nigeria and Ghana. You will also experience the beauty and history of Benin City, the unique pidgin language, how travel documents and check points work and something of how the police work. On the seamy side, you will also learn about prostitution and how those, who want to immigrate to Europe, can be taken in.
There are a lot of twists and turns… you could say… never a dull moment.
The book has a simple writing style that evokes a young adult book… but the content is hardly suitable for that age.
Last month I read Solito which describes how immigrants hire and travel with coyotes who take them from Central America to the US. I thought that was a harrowing journey… the trip from Nigeria to Italy is many times more hazardous, and less likely to be a success. Those who fail to get entrance to the US through the southern border often go back and try again. For most of those who fail to get to Italy, failure is horrendous.
If you like mysteries in non-US locations, you will find this quick, unique and fascinating read....more
The author, Noviolet Bulawayo, has created Jidada, a country run like so many post-colonial countries through violence, corruption and propaganda. TheThe author, Noviolet Bulawayo, has created Jidada, a country run like so many post-colonial countries through violence, corruption and propaganda. The book begins with a Party of Power rally. The leader, the Father of the Nation, who is a horse and his wife, Dr. Sweet Mother, a donkey, tell the animal citizens how wonderful their leadership has been since they threw out “the West”.
Reviews of this book point to Zimbabwe and its former President Robert Mugabe and his successor as the government that is satirically portrayed.
The main characters are all domestic animals such as sheep, goats, cats etc. Presumably they are middle class. Among the poverty of this nation, they live in houses, have cell phones, some drive cars. Destiny, a goat, who is central to the plot, makes her appearance a third of the way into the book. Jidada’s soldiers are typically dogs.
The satire, which can get heavy at times, has some poetically written passages which include repetition (sometimes pages of the same phrase), interjection of local dialect and “tholukuthi”. There are quotes from social media. The situations can be read as metaphors for not only 3rd world dictatorships, but also the US. The style has elements of Orwell's anthropomorphism and Marquez's magical realism.
This book is 5 stars for its ideas and plot. As “a read” it is uneven. The satire is heavy handed at times. There are a lot of characters (and their species) to keep up of. Some sections are page turners; others could be pared down. It is worth reading for those interested in political satire. I would imagine this will be most appreciated in emerging democracies....more
Chimanda Ngozi Adichie is such a good writer I almost stopped reading her novel.
In this first person narrative Kambili Achike describes life with her Chimanda Ngozi Adichie is such a good writer I almost stopped reading her novel.
In this first person narrative Kambili Achike describes life with her abusive father. After 100 pages, I could hardly stand living with him and almost abandoned the book. It seemed that Adichie would find a way out of this miserable household (this couldn’t be the whole book, could it?) so I stayed with it.
This is a character driven story. The abusive father, financially successful, religiously fanatic, politically outspoken and generous with charities cries as he delivers punishment and dominates the story. Through Kambili’s narrative you learn of his relationships with others in the nuclear family and his father and sister. Enabled by the silence of his victims, the world outside sees Eugene Achike as a model citizen.
The narrative builds to an unexpected climax and aftermath.
There is a lot here about the uncertainty of living in Nigeria. You see the contrast in the lives of the rich and the “middle class”.
It may be that this book is marketed to teens because its narrator is a teen, but the story and the writing have appeal and meaning for all ages....more
In this novel, Conrad shows how European enterprises extracted ivory from Africa at the turn of the century and the colonial attitude towards the AfriIn this novel, Conrad shows how European enterprises extracted ivory from Africa at the turn of the century and the colonial attitude towards the Africans whose country they were exploiting. It is valuable to have a novel like this written by someone who experienced this place and time, but I don’t see how this book has been accorded classic status. My expectations were high so I was disappointed that I could not get into this.
Conrad uses a first person narrative format by having Charles Marlow recount his experiences to fellow sailors (one who presumably writes the book). I thought this was an unnecessary and misleading device since the companions rarely speak. You anticipate that they and/or their voyage might be tied to the plot or that they would somehow factor in the end. None of this happens; Why are they there at all?
While some reviewers cite the brilliant prose, I found it stilted. While every page has examples here are two: p. 21 (Bantam Books edition), “… a sense of lugubrious drollery in the sight; and it was not dissipated by somebody on board assuring me…” and p. 78 “The lustre of inquiring glance faded swiftly into vacant glassiness.”
Some pages I had to read two or three times and ask myself what I read and sometimes things are said in such a convoluted way, their meaning was not clear. Word choice could be confusing, for instance, calling the company personnel (if this is what they are) “pilgrims”. These “pilgrims” are in no way “pilgrim-like” and if irony was intended, the basis of the irony wasn’t clear.
The glorification of Mr. Kurtz is overdone. The actual encounter is a letdown. The aftermath, distributing the papers, meeting the widow, etc. is at times maudlin and others self-important.
While I’ve read and appreciated fiction of this period, Conrad’s 19th century prose came off to me as pretentious.
Educators should re-think having this book on high school and college reading lists. As a mature reader, I had trouble with its meaning at the page level. The convoluted dialog must be totally perplexing to today’s young people who are used to spare and clear prose. The institutional racism is presented with offensive detachment. For young people, I think this book would be just another turn off about classics and reading in general.
The book may maintain name recognition through “Apocalypse Now” but I do not think it can stand on its own in the 21st century....more
This is the first in series of mysteries that take place in Botswana. It's good to start with volume one because you learn about Mma Ramotswe's father This is the first in series of mysteries that take place in Botswana. It's good to start with volume one because you learn about Mma Ramotswe's father and how she came to set up her agency. (Her father's mining career was a particularly interesting chapter.)
You learn about life in Botswana through what might be garden variety detective cases. Botswana, like places everywhere has worried parents, suspicious spouses, and employers who sometimes need a detective. In addition, Botswana also has crocodiles and witch doctors.
It was an enjoyable read. The books in the series have interesting titles. I will try one that appears to focus on one case.
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