A review by abbie_
La Bastarda by Trifonia Melibea Obono

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
La Bastarda by Trifonia Melibea Obono, translated from the Spanish by Lawrence Schimel, is the first book by an Equatorial Guinean woman to be published in English. It’s also banned in Equatorial Guinea because of its lesbian main characters. It’s only short, 90 pages plus a brilliant and illuminating afterword, but it’s such an important contribution to the literary scene and I’d love for more people to pick it up if they can!
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The premise is simple. Okomo is an orphaned teenage girl living with her grandparents in a small village near the Gabon border. Her world is ruled by traditional gender norms for women according to Fang culture, as well as toxic masculinity in the form of her grandfather. His favourite subject is the sexual conquests of himself and his progeny. Okomo is also grappling with her sexuality, finding refuge in the ‘Indecency Club’ and her gay uncle, referred to as a ‘man-woman’ because of his failure to consummate marriages and father children. As for Okomo and the three other girls in the Indecency Club, no word exists for them. Anything which goes against Fang tradition is regarded with suspicion, and not just sexuality. Okomo’s uncle is considered just as strange for his decision to keep his father’s ashes in an urn, rather than burying him and celebrating his death in the traditional manner.
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The afterword by Abosede George was incredibly helpful in understanding more of the context around this book, particularly regarding prejudice towards same-sex practises versus prejudice towards not conforming to reproductivity in Africa. I thought the ending of the book was maybe far-fetched but hopeful, with the characters carving out a space for their queerness to thrive away from suspicion and prejudice.
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