Sefi Atta deals with questions of identity, conformity and Nigerian society in this thought-provoking novel
Difference is both desired and feared by the characters in this thought-provoking novel by Nigerian author Sefi Atta, acclaimed by Teju Cole as one of the leading writers of her generation and winner of the inaugural Wole Soyinka prize for literature.
Bored with the monotony of her life in London, Deola Bello craves a bit of difference but can't decide whether the change she desires is one of location or job, or indeed some kind of inner transformation. Geographical change comes when Deola's job working for an international charity foundation takes her back to her native Nigeria, and yet it is not the country or family she once knew, not the one she left behind.
Not only are characters marked by their difference racially and culturally, but Atta also considers societal pressures: the protagonist is still single at 39, and her inner conflict is between the "urge to nest", to marry or maintain her independence. The burden of expectations is weighty. Should she maintain her difference or resort to sameness? Through her friendship with Wale, a hotelier, she eventually learns how our relationships can irrevocably transform us.
When society changes around us, what happens if we do not adapt; what happens when we change and society fails to move on? A new generation of Nigerian novelists are tackling such questions and shedding light on corruption. Atta hones a distinctive voice to tell a memorable if uneven story about the quest to preserve uniqueness faced with pressure to conform.
Music is interwoven throughout, from Marvin Gaye to ballads, and it is music that makes these characters feel comfortable in their strangeness.
Not only does Atta consider the differences between places, between people, but conversely the extent to which we are the same.
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