Publisher: Other Press
Release Date: May 10, 2011
Format: E-book
Pages: 448
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
From
Goodreads: When their mother catches their father with another woman, twelve year-old Blessing and her fourteen-year-old brother, Ezikiel, are forced to leave their comfortable home in Lagos for a village in the Niger Delta, to live with their mother’s family. Without running water or electricity, Warri is at first a nightmare for Blessing. Her mother is gone all day and works suspiciously late into the night to pay the children’s school fees. Her brother, once a promising student, seems to be falling increasingly under the influence of the local group of violent teenage boys calling themselves Freedom Fighters. Her grandfather, a kind if misguided man, is trying on Islam as his new religion of choice, and is even considering the possibility of bringing in a second wife.
But Blessing’s grandmother, wise and practical, soon becomes a beloved mentor, teaching Blessing the ways of the midwife in rural Nigeria. Blessing is exposed to the horrors of genital mutilation and the devastation wrought on the environment by British and American oil companies. As Warri comes to feel like home, Blessing becomes increasingly aware of the threats to its safety, both from its unshakable but dangerous traditions and the relentless carelessness of the modern world. Tiny Sunbirds, Far Away is the witty and beautifully written story of one family’s attempt to survive a new life they could never have imagined, struggling to find a deeper sense of identity along the way.
My review: It is true that books transport you to new places and times. The writing can either make you a part of the story or the fly on the wall surveying the happenings – both can be good experiences but I prefer getting lost in the story and characters. This novel brought me into the poor dirt floors and poverty. I struggled with Blessing as she left everything she knew and moved into a war torn land of sexism and racism. This story is full of real emotion, shocking conditions but possibly most of all, learning that everyone makes mistakes.
This novel is not just a colorful story of life in poor Africa, but also that of a young sister and her brother growing up – learning that childhood can taint experiences, making them bigger and better than they actually were. Blessing and Ezikiel experience the same things on their first days to Warri but soon the changes begin to happen. Blessing and Ezikiel begin to fall into young boy versus young girl positions. Blessing is removed from school and begins studying midwifery, along side her Grandmother.
The cast of characters are so varied and outlandish that they become just as much of the story as Blessing. Never taking away from her story, but accenting it with their quirks and impressions. Her understanding of herself, and the world around her, are forged from their involvement in her life. She resisted her new home, holding out for the return of her former life but if she is given the chance – could she actually leave?
That puts me at 64 books for the year, which according to Goodreads is 19 books (16%) ahead of schedule to meet my 111 in '11 goal!
