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A review by aguaa
On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
4.0
great storytelling, heartbreaking story
"'back home in nigeria,' it occurs to efe, and she says this out loud, 'neighbours would have gathered to cry with us. nobody will let you cry alone!' here their grief has to be contained within the four walls of their flat. no matter how large it becomes for them, they must not let it swell and crack the walls. efe recalls when her mother died. neighbours had come to cry with them. their mother's sister had come to live with them for two weeks, helping with the cooking and the cleaning. after she went back to warri, where she lived, the neighbours had taken over, cooking and looking after the family, even helping with the laundry and shopping, until her father's drink made him obnoxious and difficult to help. he took umbrage at the neighbours' help, sometimes shouting at them that he did not need their pity, his dead wife was three times the women they were. he screamed at them, 'get away from my family. get out of my home. i don't want you near my children. witches.' the women shut their ears to him, saying, 'poor man, he can't handle his wife's death. her death has broken him into pieces, he is not who he used to be. poor papa efe.' so they ignored him and kept coming with their offerings of food and companionship, which the children were grateful for, having been left with a father who was drinking more and more."
"'i like the way 'incredulity' and 'epoch' dey drip commot from the mouth. i like the way things wey dey opposite, salt and pepper, dey side by side. best of times. worst of times. light and darkness. it make me tink. tink say how dat for happen? and when i read am, i jus' wan write like dat. words wey fine so like butterfly, fine sotay person go wan' read am again and again.' her voice dims and she sighs. 'but dat one no go happen now.'"
"'back home in nigeria,' it occurs to efe, and she says this out loud, 'neighbours would have gathered to cry with us. nobody will let you cry alone!' here their grief has to be contained within the four walls of their flat. no matter how large it becomes for them, they must not let it swell and crack the walls. efe recalls when her mother died. neighbours had come to cry with them. their mother's sister had come to live with them for two weeks, helping with the cooking and the cleaning. after she went back to warri, where she lived, the neighbours had taken over, cooking and looking after the family, even helping with the laundry and shopping, until her father's drink made him obnoxious and difficult to help. he took umbrage at the neighbours' help, sometimes shouting at them that he did not need their pity, his dead wife was three times the women they were. he screamed at them, 'get away from my family. get out of my home. i don't want you near my children. witches.' the women shut their ears to him, saying, 'poor man, he can't handle his wife's death. her death has broken him into pieces, he is not who he used to be. poor papa efe.' so they ignored him and kept coming with their offerings of food and companionship, which the children were grateful for, having been left with a father who was drinking more and more."
"'i like the way 'incredulity' and 'epoch' dey drip commot from the mouth. i like the way things wey dey opposite, salt and pepper, dey side by side. best of times. worst of times. light and darkness. it make me tink. tink say how dat for happen? and when i read am, i jus' wan write like dat. words wey fine so like butterfly, fine sotay person go wan' read am again and again.' her voice dims and she sighs. 'but dat one no go happen now.'"