The Baobabs of Tete and Other Stories

by Kari Dako

Baobabs of Tete takes us on a whirlwind trip around Africa in a tour de force collection of perfectly crafted vignettes, each offering us an eye-opening glimpse into a starkly depicted reality filled with a cast of complex characters. In On Bare Chested Men, we watch with a mixture of amusement and sadness as a group of Ghanaian students approach a contingent of topless foreigners allowed onto their university campus. The interaction is short, but impossible to forget. In The Boy, we are forced to confront the dilemma of an ordinary woman who encounters a boy, armed with a stick, and the boy’s own desperation. In Purple Heart, we meet Selina, a thirteen year old double amputee, who recalls a morning like any other that ends in gunfire.

Worldreader presents this e-book in a new series showcasing fiction from Sub-Saharan Africa. Are you a worldreader? Read more about this not-for-profit social enterprise at worldreader.org.

Genres: Africa

79 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Tinea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bones was very skeptical when I passed him this one: "So this is a Norwegian professor writing stories from the perspective of Ghanian students commenting on European study abroad kids?" I was a bit skeptical too, though the perspective-switching only happens in a few stories, and to be real, it's pretty well done, as it's a bit of experimental self-criticism of white and colonial bodies (disrespectful and entitled European college students) through an overt re-centering Ghanaian perspectives. The empathic experiment of walking in someone else's shoes to look at oneself definitely has educational value, but it's a troubled value. I'd want to see the story used to launch a critical discussion on the role of white people in anti-racist work, and the need to actually center actual people of color instead of speaking in their stead.

The rest of the stories were entertaining and snarky, though just a bit too bitter for my taste. Lots of delicious, mean fun at the expense of the international development industrial complex, which I appreciated, but not enough emotional impact to really move me.

[Chinook · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting set of short stories, several of which examine the lives of women. Some very amusing and cutting descriptions of expats.