blessing_aj's reviews
410 reviews

A Bit of Difference by Sefi Atta

adventurous funny hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A Bit of a Difference follows Adeola’s journey as a woman grossly dissatisfied with the seemingly monotonous routine of her life as a single, child-free, Nigerian expat in her late thirties, living in London, working overseas. 

The consistency of certain elements like the presence of compelling characters, strong female characters, formidable friendships and strong sense of place -especially Lagos -  are the things I absolutely love and enjoy about Seffi Atta‘s books. A Bit of Difference, keeps with the theme but with a playful tone that doesn’t underplay the importance of the issues discussed.

I went from a false start, to absolutely treasuring this read and I look forward to reading it again in the near future.

Home Is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

When I first started reading this, I had to quickly double check that it was actually written for a YA audience because it began by interrogating some really tough issues on culture, migration and identity with an audacity that I dare say is unusual in the first few chapters of YA books that I have read in the past. It wasn’t the anger or frustration over her othered experiences in foreign soil and many other related matters. It was how precociously accurate she was in her understanding of it, that held my attention.

Each verse in HINAC, carries a lot of weight and pain, but towards the end, it balances it out by adding some hope. I thought that the time travel situation with Yasmeen was brilliantly conceived even if it was slightly flawed in its execution.  I’m also not quite sure how I felt about the ending but I will always think of Home is not A Country as a beautifully written and narrated book.

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I was very entertained. 

Salt Houses by Hala Alyan

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I imagine that there are many ways to tell stories of a war that has left its ugly marks on many generations. Moreso when the said war is at the root of everything you treasure and when there seems to be no end in sight.

With Salt Houses, Hala Alyan tells the multigenerational stories of a Palestinian family, whose economic status grants a number of privileges that guarantee their survival and a good level of comfort in their cities of refuge. Yet, neither the survivors nor the younger generation are not unscathed by the war. 

I liked that the story had a lot of depth while maintaining a good pace. I also liked that the writing was incredibly evocative, beautiful, especially when one considers the amount of pain and trauma that the families had to endure. Still on the subject matter of metaphors, I thought it was bitter-sweet to see how memory served as both a curse and a blessing at different times.

The Road to the Country by Chigozie Obioma

adventurous challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

The Road to the Country is a novel about the Nigerian Civil War. The protagonist Adekunle Aromire is a young, Yoruba man, who goes into the heat of the conflict on a personal mission and ends up trapped after he is forcefully conscripted into the Biafran army. However, for about 90% of the plot, Adekunle has not yet been born into the physical realm of the world as we know it to be. So, Kunle's account as recounted in the novel is relayed through the visions of a priest of Ifa who receives them in real time.

I'll lead with the good. The concept of time manipulation, the way it was done in this novel was brilliantly conceived, even if it wasn't seamlessly executed. I also liked that the prose was sometimes lyrical, beautifully constructed and reflective.

Unfortunately, I did not find the plot nor the characters as compelling. It was nothing at all like what I expected from a writer with Chigozie's pedigree. Also even if the whole idea was to make the reader experience the utterly terrifying and agonizing experience of fighting at the war front and other devastating outcomes of a civil war, the pacing was painfully slow and needlessly so as it did not enhance the narrative in any positive way

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

emotional reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Don’t you just love it when a writer is gutsy enough to not only craft a good narrative out of something that you could consider mundane?  Ann Patchett is that writer and she did exceptionally well with Tom Lake. The publishers’ decision to cast Meryl Streep as the narrator was the buttery icing on the cake. 

For a book set in the midst of a cherry farm during the 2020 pandemic, I sure wasn’t counting on it to evoke so many uplifting thoughts about life and yet that’s exactly what it did. The close knit nature of the Nelson family was a joy to behold. The transition between the past and present timelines was so smooth, I sometimes had to do a double take to be sure where we were. I was truly fascinated. 

This book is mostly about family but it is also how the power that little decisions hold over the trajectory of our lives. In the beginning, Laura says the story isn’t about Duke but rather about Tom Lake. She does make a good case because by the end of the novel, I could see how that one place altered the course of her life and set her on the path that she believes brought her the most happiness, contentment and peace.

However, the way I see it, the story is just as much about Duke as it is about Tom Lake and the fact that Laura is an unreliable narrator reinforces my perspective, especially when one consider the details of the secret she withholds from her girls but shares with the reader, at the end of the book. 

Tom Lake being a metaphor for opportunity and her Duke era being one for the naïveté of youth. Both worthy co-protagonists even if I despised the latter for his horrible treatment of Laura.

How different youthful indulgences appear when reviewed against the lenses of the wisdom gained from the passage of time. And how lucky is Laura for finding the courage to have chosen well, after all was said and done. 
 

Women and Leadership in Igboland: Omoku, Ime Chi and Omugwo Institutions by Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo

informative fast-paced

3.0

In this very short book, Akachi Ezigbo attempts to contradict Basden G.T.’s claim that the condition of Igbo women - in the early twentieth century when he lived amongst the Igbos - was pitiable and totally subjugated.  She argues that Igbo women enjoyed a measure of independence the management of their affairs and in empowering themselves economically. Citing the Umuada and Alutaradi groups as evidence of socio-political organizations controlled by women as well as the in-house autonomy expressed through the Omoku, Ime Chi and Omugwo Institutions. However, this monograph is only concerned with the latter.

This was an informative read. Moreso when one considers that the Ime Chi and Omoku rituals are no longer being practiced and were only ever practiced in specific parts of Igboland. 

As far as the argument goes however, I’d argue that the nature of these practices does not inherently prove that women could be said to be independent in their exercise of power. Men are and have always been known to defer to women in domestic affairs and other spheres of the society that they have no interest in dominating. If anything, some of these practices have been seized as opportunities to uphold the structures of patriarchy, as seen in certain cases where older women condition younger women to remain docile in their marriages in other to keep the peace. The argument also doesn’t taken into account the position of childless or unmarried women, in these practices. 

In summary, a subject as deep as female leadership in Igbo land needs to be as broad as possible in the scope of its research and documentation. This book did not do justice but it started something that I hope feminist scholars of this generation and the next can build on

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams

adventurous funny reflective relaxing tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This genre-blending, Chic-lit/ magically realist/ contemporary romance / historical fiction was quite the experience. Having read The Perfect Find and Seven Days in June, I found that ALSFRW incorporated everything I enjoy about Tia’s storytelling and showed how much she has grown as a writer.

The first quarter was absolutely delectable with its lyrical, poetic, vividly descriptive prose. Although as the story progressed, it did seem as if this element of the book, weakened, and it picked up speed at the tail end. 

In true Tia Williams fashion, her flair for the melodramatic was felt heavily throughout the novel. Some of it was funny and relatable. Others simply came across as gaudy and annoying. But how I loved Ricki in all her free-spirited, daring, determined, Harlem renaissance-obsessed, self. 

The depiction of the black beauty, black creativity and black excellence in 1920s Harlem was so passionately done that it made me wonder if the very idea of this book didn’t start off as a love song to Harlem before the decision to share its spotlight with Ricki.

Also true to form, the side characters were likable and engaging. The characters that made up Ricki’s birth family were entirely unbelievably but I love that she found genuine friendship and sisterhood in Tuesday. I also liked the frequently evolving dynamics in the nature of her relationship with Ms. Dela. I’m not a fan of the choices the latter made towards the end, but for most of the book I really liked her quirky approach to life. 

On the other hand, Ezra was an enigma. While I initially found the idea of the circumstances surrounding rebuff and the inevitable development of a romantic relationship with Ricki to be fascinatingly adorable, I found that I really didn’t care about him as a individual character in the grand scheme of things. 

As a result, I didn’t find the rest of the book as compelling as I did the first quarter. Everything went downhill the moment he explained their situation to Ricki. It could also be on account of the fact that the romance came so late because I found that I didn’t care much for it too.

I’m glad it wrapped up well enough, because I was really rooting for Ricki.

The Marriage Class by Adesuwa O'man Nwokedi

emotional funny reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I loved the idea of exploring romantic relationships through the lenses of the five Nigerian couples enrolled in a marriage orientation class. Each member had a unique personality - with some being more memorable than others- and following the  dynamics of each relationship made for a mostly fun, hilarious and engaging read. Yet, I really struggled to keep up with some of them because of the way the narrative was structured. I also wasn’t feeling some of the conflict resolutions between the couples.

At the end of the day, I think a lot more couples than those three should have parted ways but I was happy to see that we got a more realistic ending than the conventional HEA.

Ghostroots by ‘Pemi Aguda

adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A brilliant collection. Who knew dark surrealist stories could be told with such effervescence? I really liked the fact that the stories are deeper than they appear and unpredictable. Some of them will certainly stay with me for a while.