A REVIEW OF BOOKS I READ IN 2022… PART TWO
11. A Mercyis a Toni Morrison novel published in 2008. Set in 17th century colonial America, Jacob Vaark, a sojourner from Europe found his way to 1682 Virginia. Against the background of his optimism of the success of his farming endeavours, he advertises for a capable wife from England to share this optimism. The 16-year-old Rebekka duly arrives. The farm unfortunately is not as profitable as he had envisaged, and his optimism is severely wounded when his three sons all died at childbirth and his daughter dies at the age of five from a kick of a horse. All of this is on his mind as he traveled to Maryland to pursue a debt from a tobacco plantation owner, Señor D’Ortega. When Vaark arrives at the plantation, he observes that there is no money to pay him. D’Ortega instead offers him payment in the form of human slaves.
Vaark is outraged by this offer. However, he reluctantly receives what’s owing to him in the form of a little girl, Florens. This act is the mercy of the book’s title. It is a profoundly small mercy, of course, but, at her mother’s wish, Florens’ existence is transferred from the cruelties of Ortega’s plantation to the relative ease of Vaark’s farm.
12. Men Without Womenis a collection of short stories by Japanese writer, Haruki Murakami. Originally published in 2014 in Japanese, it was translated and published in English in 2017. Finding solace in bars while drinking whiskey and listening to jazz, the men in Murakami’s book are indeed without women. The stories offers a unique insight into the lives of men who have come to accept the fact that they are alone. In the seven stories that make up the book, we encounter men that are vulnerable and lost. Men who struggle to understand women. Interesting though are how the men in Murakami’s stories view sex. Unlike men elsewhere, these men do not take sex as primary to a relationship. Despite enjoying sex and seeking it out, the men in the stories sought something deeper than sex. The philosophical quandaries raised by the stories makes this melancholic book such a terrific read.
13. The Borroweris the debut novel of Rebecca Makkai which was published in 2011. Lucy Hall is a children’s librarian in Hannibal, Mo. Lucy’s pleasant life is upended when she encounters Ian Drake, a young boy obsessed with books. Ian’s mother, a fundamentalist Christian, visits the library one day and instructs the librarians to forbid Ian from reading books on various subjects such as, “Wizardry; Magic; Satanism/ Occult Religions, etc.; Adult Content Matter; Weaponry; the Theory of Evolution; Halloween; Roald Dahl, Lois Lowry, Harry Potter, and similar authors.”
It is interesting how Ian’s mother sought to dissuade the lively imagination of the young boy by censoring the sorts of books he could read. The Borrower is a tribute to children’s literature, with lots of references to wonderful books.
14. A Man of the Peopleis a Chinua Achebe classic published in 1966. The novel deals with the selfishness of politicians in a society rife with corruption. Mr. Nanga was Odili’s teacher before venturing into politics. Mr. Nanga the teacher became Chief the Honourable M. A Nanga, MP “the most approachable politician in the country, a man of the people”. During a political tour at his former station, he met Odili again and used the opportunity to invite Odili to his house in the city. In Chief Nanga’s house in the city, Odili discovered that his ex-teacher was involved in a lot of unethical political practices. Odili in very important respect represent the new generation of leadership in post-independence leaders compared to the earlier leaders represented by Nanga.
15. We’re going to need more wineis a collection of essays written by the American actress and television personality, Gabrielle Union. It is a very introspective memoir which chronicles the life of the actress. From reminiscing about the parties Prince used to throw to calling out her ex-husband, Chris Howard, and talking about her regret after the divorce, the memoir is both funny and deeply introspective. The details about losing her virginity, sexual encounters, cheating, infertility, miscarriages make for interesting and sad read. But it is the essay in which she describes being raped at gunpoint by a stranger in the back room of a shoe store where she worked at that is most touching. She was only 19. It is to the incredible resilience of her character that she has been able to overcome the traumatic experience of that rape encounter.
16. A Question of Poweris a novel by the South African- Batswana writer, Bessie Head, published in 1974. The novel centres around a woman called Elizabeth as she journeys from her home country, South Africa, to Motabeng, a village in Botswana. The circumstance surrounding Elizabeth’s birth is of significance as she is born to a white mother and a black farmer in apartheid South Africa. Elizabeth is told by the head of the missionary home, where she stayed during most of her infancy, that her mother went mad, and she had better be careful else she would also go mad. Yet Elizabeth could not do anything about it as she also succumbed to a mental disorder which confined her to hospitals and mental homes. The visions of Elizabeth as she slides in and out of insanity forms the basis of the novel.
17. The Beautyful Ones Are Not Born Yetis a novel by Ghanaian writer, Ayi Kwei Armah, published in 1968. Read a longer review of the novel here; https://nathanaidoo.com/2022/06/29/the-poor-are-rich-in-patience-a-book-review/
18. Devil on the Crossis a novel authored by the Kenyan writer Ngugi wa Thiong’o in 1980. Ngugi wrote this novel in secret, on toilet papers, while detained in a prison in Kenya. Devil on the Cross is a powerful critique of capitalism and neo-colonialism. The novel opens with the story of Wariinga, a young woman who moves from a rural Kenyan town to the capital, Nairobi. Wariinga is exploited by her boss at work and later by a corrupt businessman. As she struggles to survive, Wariinga begins to comprehend that her issues are merely signs of a broader social ill and that most of her country’s tragedy is due to capitalist influences that have pervaded their society from their contact with their western imperial forces. Ngugi unapologetically takes a stance for Marxist socialism in this novel. Despite being ideologically opposed to Marxism, I found this novel very intriguing and educative. It is surely a must read for all young Africans interested in the development of the continent.
19. Undisputed Truthis the memoirs of former world heavyweight boxing champion, Mike Tyson. From his abusive marriage to Robin Givens; his 1992 rape conviction and prison sentence; the Holyfield ear-bite fight; his legal battles with promoter Don King; his struggles with drugs; and, the half-billion dollars he burned through his career, Tyson lays it all bare in this book. He acknowledges the mistakes he has made in his life with a very compelling storytelling ability. The book reveals parts of Tyson’s persona that hitherto wouldn’t have been known to the public. He comes across in sections of the book as a funny and a very self-aware man.
20. The African Development Bank: Problems of International Cooperationis a fascinating account of events and developments during Dr.Kwame Donkoh Fordwor’s time as the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), which was published in 1981. The book details the fascinating role politics plays in an international organisation such as the AfDB. Dr.Fordwor vividly writes about his personal struggle in the successful institution-building of the young organisation set against a backdrop of international bureaucratic intrigue. Despite guiding the Bank successfully through the contentious issue of opening-up its membership to non-African countries, he was abruptly dismissed by the Bank’s directors shortly after this achievement. This book is a great read for political scientists, economists and anyone interested in international development.