Fate of Vultures: New Poetry of Africa

by Musaemura Zimunya, Peter Porter, Kofi Anyidoho (Editor)

This selection of poems is from 4500 entries submitted for the 1988 BBC Arts and Africa Poetry Award. The collection reflects the great depth and vigour of contemporary African poetry.

111 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1989

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonder sampling works by various poets from across the African continent. There are so many themes that are touched upon by these talented writers-- war, poverty, soldiers, street children, motherhood--that the reader could easily become inured to the message and style. But these poets are master writers and each in their own unique way present these topics that are immediate, poignant and very powerful.

My favorite poem was "Yesterday They Came Again" by Ken N. Kamoche (Kenya). It echoes the daunting foreshadowing that we read in Martin Niemoller's poem "First They Came for the Communist". The air of dread that Kamoche creates is palpable and his use of "They came again" is eerily similar to Niemoller's "First they came for the Communists....then they came for the Socialists...".

Equally powerful is Ama Asantewa Ababio's (Zimbabwe) "We Mothers" which puts a plaintive voice to the mothers of Soweto, Kingston and Harlem who have lost so much. The final eight lines hit like a hammer:

we are the mothers
wronged by history
we are the mothers
we will not forget
we are the mothers
whose seed
will exact justice
from your future generations

This is an excellent introduction to talented African poets in 1988. We need to have more updated compendiums produced.