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juniperd's review
4.0
"Vassanji has always been fascinated by what he calls “in-between” lives. “It’s not just what I write,” he says, “it’s what I am.” It’s the modern condition—“you could be from Newfoundland and now live in Toronto,” as Vassanji does. But Africa is a special case, he adds, partly because the in-between-ness of Asian Africans like him stretches over three continents, and partly “because I feel very strongly the world doesn’t hear enough from Africans. We talk about horrible conditions there and we give aid, but we don’t allow Africans at the cultural table.” That’s why Vassanji returned there for his new book, to craft an insider account of Africa’s rich and complex reality."*
vassanji's memoir is so thoughtful and his writing is lovely. i enjoyed very much, the way this book presents in several ways: it's a personal exploration for the author, as he thinks about his place in the world, and his feelings as someone who is 'in-between'. the book also serves as a bit of a travel diary, and a good history lesson. vassanji ties these functions together very well and the book, his story, is very compelling.
i had the good fortune to once meet this author. as i felt about this book - thoughtful and lovely - so is the man. he seems very kind, and was very soft-spoken, almost embarrassed with the positive attention he was receiving. (i was at a very small event held in his honour, just before the launch of [b:The Magic of Saida|13131108|The Magic of Saida|M.G. Vassanji|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333578282s/13131108.jpg|18307343]. there were, maybe, 30 people present.) so it was a bit of an added bonus that, while i read and home was kariakoo, i could hear vassanji's voice in my head.
vassanji contemplates some heavy themes in this book: the place (and history) of asian and indian people within africa; the history of slavery; the political instabilities and corruptions; western aid; the portraits of africa so often created and shown on western media. i loved reading his thoughts on all of these subjects. and i appreciated the value of his experiences - they help create a much richer and more nuanced portrait of eastern africa. the book actually feels like required reading to me, so i am sure i will be recommending it a lot.
there are also some lighter moments in the book, and my favourite part involved vassanji being invited to address a graduating class of students in 'art & sciences'. he was asked if he could speak about careers, and told his presence would be a great honour. vassanji shows up, quite nervous about his speech, and discovers he is to address a group of 4yo children, who are graduating from an early-childhood program. clearly a few details were omitted from the invitation. but these people - the children, parents, teachers, were "... from my tribe, so to speak...The ties were emotional." vassanji was happy to be in attendance, and optimistic contemplating the children's futures.
* quote from maclean's magazine. you can read brief excerpt of the book on their site: http://www.macleans.ca/culture/books/bound-by-east-africas-call/
amber_thiessen's review
3.0
I read this as I was homesick for Tanzania. There was so much history that I didn't know when I lived there. I enjoyed going back there, through his story, seeing so much of the life and culture that I had grown to love, with new eyes to see some of the history of the country.
bmac11's review
3.0
I had enjoyed this book and learned many new things about they area, however may have been better if I had traveled there. On the list of places to go!
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