Awu's Story: A Novel

Posted on 13 September 2019 by Justine Mintsa

At the dawn of the twenty first century, villages in the Fang region of northern Gabon must grapple with the clash of tradition and the evolution of customs throughout modern Africa With this tension in the background, the passionate, deft, and creative seamstress Awu marries Obame, after he and his beloved wife, Bella, have been unable to conceive Because all three are reluctant participants in this arrangement, theirs is an emotionally fraught existence Through heartbreaking and disastrous events, Awu grapples with long standing Fang customs that counter her desire to take full control of her life and home Supplemented with a foreword and critical introduction highlighting Justine Mintsa s importance in African literature, Awu s Story is an essential work of African women s writing and the only published work to meditate this deeply on some of the Fang s most cherished legends and oral history. Download Awu's Story: A Novel – kino-fada.fr Once in a while I find that s it s good to read a translation of a book that I believe will teach me something about another country, it s culture, it s customs I came across the advanced copy of this short volume and then I read such high praises for it and how it represents the literature of Gabon, the way of the Fang people so I took the opportunity to see what it was about It turned out to be a not only a learning experience, but also a moving story of a woman with modern ideas, an Once in a while I find that s it s good to read a translation of a book that I believe will teach me something about another country, it s culture, it s customs I came across the advanced copy of this short volume and then I read such high praises for it and how it represents the literature of Gabon, the way of the Fang people so I took the opportunity to see what it was about It turned out to be a not only a learning experience, but also a moving story of a woman with modern ideas, an education and ingenuity, yet still wrapped in the customs of her people As in many other cultures, in Ebomane, the blessings of a household are measured in terms of its ability to produce Awu, reluctantly for all involved, becomes the second wife of Obame, a revere...Ce roman tait terrible, aussi Il s agit d un homme qui n a jamais aim sa deuxi me femme parce que son c ur appartenait sa premi re pouse d c d e Il passe la majorit du roman essayer de recevoir sa pension, mais il meurt avant de pouvoir l obtenir Apr s son enterrement, sa femme est bless e dans un rituel violent pour chasser l esprit de son mari d c d Apr s sa mort, elle n a plus rien, mais elle l accepte parce qu elle veut seulement ses enfants C tait un roman tr s d primant et Ce roman tait terrible, aussi Il s agit d un homme qui n a jamais aim sa deuxi me femme parce que son c ur appartenait sa premi re pouse d c d e Il passe la majorit du roman essayer de recevoir sa pension, mais il meurt avant de pouvoir l obtenir Apr s son enterrement, sa femme est bless e dans un rituel violent pour chasser l esprit de son mari d c d Apr s sa mort, elle n a plus rien, mais elle l accepte parce qu elle veut seulement ses enfants C tait un roman tr s d primant et c est aussi le meilleur roman d Afrique subsaharienne que j ai lu ce semestre l universit ...Seeof my book reviews on my blog, Literary FlitsAwu s Story, in this edition, begins with informative introductions by Therese Kuoh Moukhoury and Cheryl Toman While I did appreciate these immensely they give a lot of additional background to the novella and to Gabonese literature in general I would recommend not tackling them until after reading the book itself In their explanations of incidents in Awu s Story I thought they gave away too much of what was to come.Awu s Story explores Seeof my book reviews on my blog, Literary FlitsAwu s Story, in this edition, begins with informative introductions by Therese Kuoh Moukhoury and Cheryl Toman While I did appreciate these immensely they give a lot of additional background to the nov...FIRST LINE REVIEW Interlocking rings took shape, obediently lining up one after the other This opening line, describing the needlework executed by the title character, is also a poetic description of the story that unfolds in this short but rich accounting of life in a Gabon village today A rather harsh life full of ancient traditions that continue to demean the woman of this country, but with the message that it is time for the women to stop allowing the traditional abuses to continue A FIRST LINE REVIEW Interlocking rings took shape, obediently lining up one after the other This opening line, ...A great novel with the right amount of detail crisp and concise , interesting characters, a nice story and a lot of background on Gabon s society What else would you need from a novelLovely, sad, and uplifting all at the same time I m going to go snuggle into some tissues and emotionally recover now.With this novel, Justine Mintsa has gifted readers with a mesmerising piece of Gabonese literature, which is rich in character development and cultural elements that depict epic symbolism.

13 September 2019

Justine Mintsa