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A review by lovelykd
Welcome to Lagos by Chibundu Onuzo
3.0
****3.5 STARS***
I don't know what I was expecting, but it wouldn't be a lie to say the cover was part of the reason I even decided to pick up this book; it's stunning.
Beyond that, I've found myself, albeit unsuspectingly, drawn towards a lot of Nigerian authors lately: Akwaeke Emezi, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Tomi Adeyemi, to name a few. I don't know if that's coincidental, or if there's just a lot more books to be found, of late.
Either way, I'm enjoying the breadth of stories offered by so many talented, young, authors of color.
Chike is a Nigerian soldier. When he is forced with the decision to burn down yet another village, he is faced with an undeniable crisis of conscience, that leads to a sudden epiphany: this is no longer the life he wants to live.
Chike decides to desert his regimen--fleeing along with a loyal private named Yemi--and see if he can pull together a more honorable life elsewhere.
Along the way, he encounters Fineboy (a rebel without a cause), Isoken (on the run from rebels after her own village is left to burn), and Oma (a married woman who's on the run from an abusive husband).
For whatever reason, Chike makes this unlikely set of people his responsibility, and they set their sights on Lagos. A sprawling metropolis where they can blend in anonymously, and live without fear of their individual demons catching up to them.
As the unlikely group makes it way towards Lagos, we also learn the story of Chief Sandayo.
Sandayo is the Minister of Education, but in title only. Despite his good intentions, he's been unable to get around the corruption and red tape long enough to make any sort of difference. Castigated by his superiors for his lack of deference, disliked by his constituents for his ineffectiveness, and with nothing further to lose, Sandayo decides to 'take the money and run' when he's told the wheels are already in motion for his replacement.
Disillusioned, and full of self-righteous indignation, Sandayo opts to take what he feels he's owed and return home. However, a twist of fate brings him into the orbit of the five fugitives who become a sort of family over the course of many months together.
The chief's notoriety, and the money he's brought with it, opens a door of opportunity. One that could either redeem or sink them all.
Welcome to Lagos is as much about hope, as it is about futility.
The juxtapostion between Chike and Chief Sandayo--one jaded by the system, the other not yet ready to believe nothing is possible--was fascinating. Both wanted the same result, but time and experience disillusioned Sandayo to the point of (near) apathy.
More subtle similarities existed between Ahmed (a Nigerian journalist) and Fineboy (a young man with dreams of becoming a golden voice for radio).
Where Ahmed had the opportunities and financial backing to become something greater, Fineboy was forced to depend on his ingenuity, and cunning. You always felt the sense that if each had a little bit of the other within himself, they might have fared better--socially and professionally.
The city of Lagos is definitely a place that plays a huge role in the book.
Onuzo does a phenomenal job placing you within its confines--both the good and the bad of it all--as well as granting you a glimpse of the corruption and poverty its inhabitants face daily.
Welcome to Lagos is not a love story, nor is it one you'll walk away from feeling uplifted and hopeful. It is simply a snapshot of the truth. A truth many of us can walk away from the moment we close the book, if we so choose--and that, in and of itself, is as much a part of the story.
I don't know what I was expecting, but it wouldn't be a lie to say the cover was part of the reason I even decided to pick up this book; it's stunning.
Beyond that, I've found myself, albeit unsuspectingly, drawn towards a lot of Nigerian authors lately: Akwaeke Emezi, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Tomi Adeyemi, to name a few. I don't know if that's coincidental, or if there's just a lot more books to be found, of late.
Either way, I'm enjoying the breadth of stories offered by so many talented, young, authors of color.
Chike is a Nigerian soldier. When he is forced with the decision to burn down yet another village, he is faced with an undeniable crisis of conscience, that leads to a sudden epiphany: this is no longer the life he wants to live.
Chike decides to desert his regimen--fleeing along with a loyal private named Yemi--and see if he can pull together a more honorable life elsewhere.
Along the way, he encounters Fineboy (a rebel without a cause), Isoken (on the run from rebels after her own village is left to burn), and Oma (a married woman who's on the run from an abusive husband).
For whatever reason, Chike makes this unlikely set of people his responsibility, and they set their sights on Lagos. A sprawling metropolis where they can blend in anonymously, and live without fear of their individual demons catching up to them.
As the unlikely group makes it way towards Lagos, we also learn the story of Chief Sandayo.
Sandayo is the Minister of Education, but in title only. Despite his good intentions, he's been unable to get around the corruption and red tape long enough to make any sort of difference. Castigated by his superiors for his lack of deference, disliked by his constituents for his ineffectiveness, and with nothing further to lose, Sandayo decides to 'take the money and run' when he's told the wheels are already in motion for his replacement.
Disillusioned, and full of self-righteous indignation, Sandayo opts to take what he feels he's owed and return home. However, a twist of fate brings him into the orbit of the five fugitives who become a sort of family over the course of many months together.
The chief's notoriety, and the money he's brought with it, opens a door of opportunity. One that could either redeem or sink them all.
Welcome to Lagos is as much about hope, as it is about futility.
The juxtapostion between Chike and Chief Sandayo--one jaded by the system, the other not yet ready to believe nothing is possible--was fascinating. Both wanted the same result, but time and experience disillusioned Sandayo to the point of (near) apathy.
More subtle similarities existed between Ahmed (a Nigerian journalist) and Fineboy (a young man with dreams of becoming a golden voice for radio).
Where Ahmed had the opportunities and financial backing to become something greater, Fineboy was forced to depend on his ingenuity, and cunning. You always felt the sense that if each had a little bit of the other within himself, they might have fared better--socially and professionally.
The city of Lagos is definitely a place that plays a huge role in the book.
Onuzo does a phenomenal job placing you within its confines--both the good and the bad of it all--as well as granting you a glimpse of the corruption and poverty its inhabitants face daily.
Welcome to Lagos is not a love story, nor is it one you'll walk away from feeling uplifted and hopeful. It is simply a snapshot of the truth. A truth many of us can walk away from the moment we close the book, if we so choose--and that, in and of itself, is as much a part of the story.