Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by nicjohnston
The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa by Stephen Buoro
3.0
The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa is an Observer debut of the year and is a book getting a lot of chat ahead of its release on 13 April 2023.
Andy is a maths prodigy with limited opportunities ahead of him. Living in a small North Nigerian town with his mother, the local (British) priest has helped Andy to get an opportunity at the best school in the area. But Andy is a dreamer, and his life doesn’t lack drama.
Obsessed with blondes, the arrival of the priest’s niece turns Andy’s world upside down in many different ways. Hanging with his ‘droogs’ Slim, Morocco and Fatima - Andy is thrown when a man shows up claiming to be his father.
I struggled to connect with Andy, possibly because of the unique style of the prose. There is a lot going on and it feels a little overworked and overly complex. The one character I did really like, Fatima, got a lack of page space.
I’m sure this will be wildly popular but wasn’t one for me.
Andy is a maths prodigy with limited opportunities ahead of him. Living in a small North Nigerian town with his mother, the local (British) priest has helped Andy to get an opportunity at the best school in the area. But Andy is a dreamer, and his life doesn’t lack drama.
Obsessed with blondes, the arrival of the priest’s niece turns Andy’s world upside down in many different ways. Hanging with his ‘droogs’ Slim, Morocco and Fatima - Andy is thrown when a man shows up claiming to be his father.
I struggled to connect with Andy, possibly because of the unique style of the prose. There is a lot going on and it feels a little overworked and overly complex. The one character I did really like, Fatima, got a lack of page space.
I’m sure this will be wildly popular but wasn’t one for me.