Scan barcode
A review by librarysoflyss
Ghostroots by 'Pemi Aguda
5.0
this eerie, surrealist short story collection was everything i want a short story collection to be. teeming with darkness, these stories explore gender structures, patriarchal and familial expectations, religion and mythology in lagos, nigeria. each story is firmly rooted in an embodiment of place, weaving Nigerian culture and folklore throughout.
these stories master the delicate balance between the normative and the unknown, carefully portraying the realities of human struggle in a decadent, haunting manner. for a debut work, this blew me away. i found all the stories to be strong and unique in their own right, and i haven't stopped thinking about many of the stories since i finished this collection. overall, "ghostroots," is a beautiful exploration of the things that bind us together and what tears us apart.
my favorites from the collection were:
-the hollow: assigned to a new project, an architect reckons with an unsettling realization: that the walls of the home she is working on conceals far more than what meets the eye. none of her measurements align, prompting a growing awareness that generations of violence live within these walls and that sometimes houses are built to fight back.
-24, alhaji williams street: one by one, in sequence of houses along the street, the youngest son of each family meets an untimely death, unfailingly in order. despite each family's desperate efforts to prevent these tragedies, nothing proves effective. now, the boy residing in the 24th house can only wait in dread, knowing his turn will inevitably come.
-masquerade season: after a young boy veers off path on his way home, he encounters three masquerades adorned in raffia and feathers who declare themselves as his own masquerades. curiously, he invites them to his home, unwittingly setting off a chain of unexpected consequences.
these stories master the delicate balance between the normative and the unknown, carefully portraying the realities of human struggle in a decadent, haunting manner. for a debut work, this blew me away. i found all the stories to be strong and unique in their own right, and i haven't stopped thinking about many of the stories since i finished this collection. overall, "ghostroots," is a beautiful exploration of the things that bind us together and what tears us apart.
my favorites from the collection were:
-the hollow: assigned to a new project, an architect reckons with an unsettling realization: that the walls of the home she is working on conceals far more than what meets the eye. none of her measurements align, prompting a growing awareness that generations of violence live within these walls and that sometimes houses are built to fight back.
-24, alhaji williams street: one by one, in sequence of houses along the street, the youngest son of each family meets an untimely death, unfailingly in order. despite each family's desperate efforts to prevent these tragedies, nothing proves effective. now, the boy residing in the 24th house can only wait in dread, knowing his turn will inevitably come.
-masquerade season: after a young boy veers off path on his way home, he encounters three masquerades adorned in raffia and feathers who declare themselves as his own masquerades. curiously, he invites them to his home, unwittingly setting off a chain of unexpected consequences.