A review by nadia
The Street Hawker's Apprentice by Kabir Kareem-Bello

dark emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book took me right to the bustling, unforgiving underbelly of Lagos, focusing on the relationship of two boys, one brought up on the streets, and the other seemingly from a different tier of society, yet his memory loss prevents us from knowing the full story from the get-go.

The Street-Hawker's Apprentice is packed with Yoruba and phonetically-written dialogue. Coming from a Yoruba family, I found this setting close to my heart and the book super immersive, though given even I struggled with a few (tiny) things, maybe it'll be less of a smooth read for people unfamiliar with the language or culture. Don't worry though! Often translations are placed immediately after or will be implied by the attached prose.

If you love books about survival, hustling, friendship, corruption, class divides and more, then this is one for you. And chapter-to-chapter, the use of perspective shifts is used in a way that I really enjoy!

(If I were you, I'd avoid the blurb of this one, especially the first paragraph. It's not a big deal, but reading it removes the chance of enjoying a little 'a-ha' moment towards the end.)
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