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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
informative
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was great.
I loved how all the characters felt unique, flawed and real. I loved learning about Nigeria and Lagos. The language, the lifestyle and the people. And I appreciate the structure of the novel. The short chapters and the changes in perspective made it feel dynamic.
I cared more about some characters than others (e.g. I wasn't that interested in Ahmed) but each served their purpose in the story, so I wasn't mad at them. In hindsight I find it interesting that all major perspectives (3 or 4) were male, as the novel is written by a woman. Not necessarily bad, just something I noticed. Especially since Oma and Isoken, seemed just as complex and interesting as all the other characters.
The story could have gone very dark with the cast coming from various troubled backgrounds. But it didn't. Some may interpret this as naivity but I felt that it was a conscious choice on the author's part to focus more on the positive things these people could bring to the table to help each other. If you want to learn about what it's like being a child soldier in Nigeria there a tons of interesting reads and watches out there.
Still the ending left me feeling a bit unsatisfied as I didn't care much about Ahmed and did very much care about Chike.
I also don't feel like this story will stay with me for very long. It just didn't leave a huge impact on me but due to the beautiful prose and character development I will check out Chibundu Onuzo's future work.
(and I will of course mark my mistake if I'm still thinking about this book in a few months)
I loved how all the characters felt unique, flawed and real. I loved learning about Nigeria and Lagos. The language, the lifestyle and the people. And I appreciate the structure of the novel. The short chapters and the changes in perspective made it feel dynamic.
I cared more about some characters than others (e.g. I wasn't that interested in Ahmed) but each served their purpose in the story, so I wasn't mad at them. In hindsight I find it interesting that all major perspectives (3 or 4) were male, as the novel is written by a woman. Not necessarily bad, just something I noticed. Especially since Oma and Isoken, seemed just as complex and interesting as all the other characters.
The story could have gone very dark with the cast coming from various troubled backgrounds. But it didn't. Some may interpret this as naivity but I felt that it was a conscious choice on the author's part to focus more on the positive things these people could bring to the table to help each other. If you want to learn about what it's like being a child soldier in Nigeria there a tons of interesting reads and watches out there.
Still the ending left me feeling a bit unsatisfied as I didn't care much about Ahmed and did very much care about Chike.
I also don't feel like this story will stay with me for very long. It just didn't leave a huge impact on me but due to the beautiful prose and character development I will check out Chibundu Onuzo's future work.
(and I will of course mark my mistake if I'm still thinking about this book in a few months)
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read the first five chapters of Chibundu Onuzo's Welcome to Lagos, and whilst they were well written, they simply did not grab me. I felt detached from the characters who had been introduced, and they pale in comparison with the vivid descriptions given of Nigeria. Another for the Kindle graveyard.
Rounding up, 3.5 stars.
What I loved about this book:
The theme of found family is probably one of my all-time favorite themes.
The setting - the author does an amazing job of painting a picture of Lagos.
The main character - Chike is such a kind soul, but not boring.
What I didn't like:
The cast of characters was too big.
It took a long time for the meat of the story (when the Chief joins the group and gains attention) to get started.
What I loved about this book:
The theme of found family is probably one of my all-time favorite themes.
The setting - the author does an amazing job of painting a picture of Lagos.
The main character - Chike is such a kind soul, but not boring.
What I didn't like:
The cast of characters was too big.
It took a long time for the meat of the story (when the Chief joins the group and gains attention) to get started.
Opening outside the oil-rich Niger Delta city of Port Harcourt, this story follows five Nigerians who are fleeing the region for Lagos. The ostensible leader is Chike, an Army officer fed up with carrying our arbitrary acts of brutality in the never-ending war against those in the Delta seeking justice in the face of multinational oil companies. He deserts along with his deputy, Yemi, and as they flee through the jungle, they stumble across a young militant named Fineboy, who follows along. By the time they get off the bus in Lagos, the cast of characters includes a young woman who survived losing her family and being sexually assaulted, as well as a middle-class woman fleeing her abusive marriage. With little money and the daunting logistics of the teeming city, the five band uneasily together to survive.
The tension between living moral and ethical lives, and the need to hustle and do what it takes to stay alive, drives the story for a while, as the group has to pay a gang for the right to sleep under a particular bridge. Eventually, Fineboy locates a furnished space for them to squat in, and life gets a little better. Without spoiling things, a new character comes on the scene, with enough money to make things really interesting. The seventh character added to the group is a journalist, whose story gradually starts to take over the second half of the book. Indeed, it gets significantly derailed he ends up in England, where he went to university, and embarks on a low-key courtship of a BBC reporter.
There are plenty of picaresque twists and turns, but the omnipresence of corruption and violence blanket the lives of the characters. And while it's an affectionate picture of the country, significant warts and all -- to a certain degree, I was a bit surprised that in broad terms it didn't challenge many of the stereotypes of Nigeria. In that sense, I suppose I would recommend it primarily to those planning on reading a broad range of Nigerian fiction that might help lend some depth and context to this ensemble piece.
The tension between living moral and ethical lives, and the need to hustle and do what it takes to stay alive, drives the story for a while, as the group has to pay a gang for the right to sleep under a particular bridge. Eventually, Fineboy locates a furnished space for them to squat in, and life gets a little better. Without spoiling things, a new character comes on the scene, with enough money to make things really interesting. The seventh character added to the group is a journalist, whose story gradually starts to take over the second half of the book. Indeed, it gets significantly derailed he ends up in England, where he went to university, and embarks on a low-key courtship of a BBC reporter.
There are plenty of picaresque twists and turns, but the omnipresence of corruption and violence blanket the lives of the characters. And while it's an affectionate picture of the country, significant warts and all -- to a certain degree, I was a bit surprised that in broad terms it didn't challenge many of the stereotypes of Nigeria. In that sense, I suppose I would recommend it primarily to those planning on reading a broad range of Nigerian fiction that might help lend some depth and context to this ensemble piece.