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Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun
Morayo Da Silva, a cosmopolitan Nigerian woman, lives in hip San Francisco. On the cusp of seventy-five, she is in good health and makes the most of it, enjoying road trips in her vintage Porsche, chatting to strangers, and recollecting characters from her favourite novels. Then she has a fall and her independence crumbles. Without the support of family, she relies on friends and chance encounters. As Morayo recounts her story, moving seamlessly between past and present, we meet Dawud, a charming Palestinian shopkeeper, Sage, a feisty, homeless Grateful Dead devotee, and Antonio, the poet whom Morayo desired more than her ambassador husband.
A subtle story about ageing, friendship and loss, this is also a nuanced study of the erotic yearnings of an older woman.
A subtle story about ageing, friendship and loss, this is also a nuanced study of the erotic yearnings of an older woman.
118 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2016
102 people are currently reading
3627 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Ladipo Manyika
11 books166 followersSarah Ladipo Manyika was raised in Nigeria and has lived in Kenya, France, and England. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, and for several years taught literature at San Francisco State University. Sarah currently serves on the boards of Hedgebrook and the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco. Sarah is a Patron of the Etisalat Prize for Literature and host to OZY’s video series “Write.” Her second novel
Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun
was shortlisted for the 2016 Goldsmiths Prize.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 364 reviews
May 20, 2023
Dr. Morayo Da Silva is not a survivor... she is an adventurer! 74 years old and living in one of the hip areas of San Francisco with her books, her books, her books and her old Porsche, 'Buttercup.' Marayo, having been so well travelled often thinks of the past, questions her external ageing vs how she feels internally and dissects and analyses literature. We join her just going about her day...
This is pretty much a masterpiece, a clever understated look at ageing and how it impacts on who Dr. Marayo is and, and how she sees herself, and wants to be. The beauty of this novella is its deeply engaging look at a diverse group people in the first person with such real feeling and authenticity, as opposed to the 2nd or 3rd hand reporting that I feel comes across in a lot of Western and Eastern writing - that or learning about other cultures through the media, as opposed to living with / talking to them / getting to really know them.
I really felt like I got sniff of Nigeria, Brazil, Guyana, Italy, America etc when thus-heritaged )or born) characters came into the story. It felt like everyone, everybody counted, from the homeless through to Doc Marayo herself. That's what I got from this book - everyone's lens matters. The inner thoughts and feeling of the main (elderly) black female protagonist are blooming superb. No doubt! Not a cliché or stereotype to be found, Doc Marayo sounded and felt real, and Hell yeah, an older women will and still can think about sex! ...Methinks the world needs to learn and read more about Dr Marayo.
Whenever I read a book by a lesser known writer I ask myself if a famous writer wrote this what would people be saying? This is a masterclass in writing, in nuance, in characterisation and even reality building. Damn, I want to live in Ladipa Manyika's California. Five. Star. Read. 10 out of 12.
2019 read
This is pretty much a masterpiece, a clever understated look at ageing and how it impacts on who Dr. Marayo is and, and how she sees herself, and wants to be. The beauty of this novella is its deeply engaging look at a diverse group people in the first person with such real feeling and authenticity, as opposed to the 2nd or 3rd hand reporting that I feel comes across in a lot of Western and Eastern writing - that or learning about other cultures through the media, as opposed to living with / talking to them / getting to really know them.
I really felt like I got sniff of Nigeria, Brazil, Guyana, Italy, America etc when thus-heritaged )or born) characters came into the story. It felt like everyone, everybody counted, from the homeless through to Doc Marayo herself. That's what I got from this book - everyone's lens matters. The inner thoughts and feeling of the main (elderly) black female protagonist are blooming superb. No doubt! Not a cliché or stereotype to be found, Doc Marayo sounded and felt real, and Hell yeah, an older women will and still can think about sex! ...Methinks the world needs to learn and read more about Dr Marayo.
Whenever I read a book by a lesser known writer I ask myself if a famous writer wrote this what would people be saying? This is a masterclass in writing, in nuance, in characterisation and even reality building. Damn, I want to live in Ladipa Manyika's California. Five. Star. Read. 10 out of 12.
2019 read
January 1, 2017
Retired English professor Morayo Da Silva, of Nigerian descent, lived in a rent-controlled, sub-divided house in San Francisco. Feisty and unconventional, she drove "Buttercup" her Porsche. Approaching her 75th birthday, she embraced her yearly tradition of buying new shoes and trying something daring, a tattoo perhaps?
A young Morayo married an ambassador and traveled the world. After her divorce, she became a university professor. Upon retirement, her books became her literary friends and she often collected several copies of the same tome. Her circle of colleagues and friends diminished. She looked forward to conversing with Li Wei the mailman, Dawud the Palestinian shopkeeper, and Sunshine a former neighbor. She daydreamed about writing a novel that envisioned a life she hoped for and had imagined.
Experiencing an accident, Morayo was sent to a Home to re-cooperate from a broken hip. Her freedom to do as she chose was hampered. She longed for heads to turn when she entered a room. She did,however, form new friendships.
"Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun" by Sarah Ladipo Manyika is a commentary on life changes associated with aging including changes in freedom and decision making. It is an excellent character study that might have been enhanced by further development of the secondary characters. That said, it was an excellent very enjoyable novella.
A young Morayo married an ambassador and traveled the world. After her divorce, she became a university professor. Upon retirement, her books became her literary friends and she often collected several copies of the same tome. Her circle of colleagues and friends diminished. She looked forward to conversing with Li Wei the mailman, Dawud the Palestinian shopkeeper, and Sunshine a former neighbor. She daydreamed about writing a novel that envisioned a life she hoped for and had imagined.
Experiencing an accident, Morayo was sent to a Home to re-cooperate from a broken hip. Her freedom to do as she chose was hampered. She longed for heads to turn when she entered a room. She did,however, form new friendships.
"Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun" by Sarah Ladipo Manyika is a commentary on life changes associated with aging including changes in freedom and decision making. It is an excellent character study that might have been enhanced by further development of the secondary characters. That said, it was an excellent very enjoyable novella.
October 5, 2021
My only complaint is how short this book is. This is an intelligent look into the life of a 75 year old woman whose lived a very full life. I cannot get enough of books written from the perspective of older women who are still living their very best lives! Honestly, too often we read books about older women and they are dowdy, grandmothers filled with regrets... this is the opposite of our main character.
While she is almost 75 she's lived a full life, she's got a lot going for her, independent, and spunky without being a stereotype. This is such great story, written with care, love and intelligence. If this is not on your reading list... IT SHOULD BE!
Deep down, I know that my desire to return home comes from nostalgia than genuine longing to return.
I no longer organize by books alphabetically, or arrange them by colour of spine, which was what I used to do. Now the books are arranged according to which characters I believe ought to be talking to each other. That's why Wide Sargassi Sea sits directly above Jane Eyre. The latter used to sit next to each other but then I thought it best to redress the only colonial imbalance and give Rhys the upper hand- upper shelf.
While she is almost 75 she's lived a full life, she's got a lot going for her, independent, and spunky without being a stereotype. This is such great story, written with care, love and intelligence. If this is not on your reading list... IT SHOULD BE!
Deep down, I know that my desire to return home comes from nostalgia than genuine longing to return.
I no longer organize by books alphabetically, or arrange them by colour of spine, which was what I used to do. Now the books are arranged according to which characters I believe ought to be talking to each other. That's why Wide Sargassi Sea sits directly above Jane Eyre. The latter used to sit next to each other but then I thought it best to redress the only colonial imbalance and give Rhys the upper hand- upper shelf.
June 19, 2019
This promising novella follows a few days in the life of 75 year old Moraya Da Silva -a stylish, independent, former English professor. There were moments when I was delighted with Moraya and the literary references. But this little novel spreads itself too thin. Chapters are devoted to half a dozen characters - at 118 pages it loses focus and loses its charm.
September 30, 2016
This is an exceptional novella. My only complaint is I wanted it to be longer. I could have read about Morayo for hundreds of pages. She is a fascinating protagonist. She on the verge of her 75th birthday but she is anything but old. She wears toe rings and she has a tradition on birthdays of doing something new. This year she is planning a tattoo. She is also planning her party and in the midst of that she suffers a fall and has to go to an elderly care home. As you can imagine she doesn't exactly fit in here. I found her story to be so inspiring and uplifting. It is so refreshing to read a story with such vibrant diverse characters that talks about race and aging in such a positive way.
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April 21, 2020A character piece about a 75yo Nigerian woman living in San Francisco, coping with the ills flesh is heir to, meeting people as she goes about her business, reflecting on her life. There isn't a plot as such: it's a series of character voices (which are not well distinguished by the formatting in my epub copy, but it was clear enough).
It's well written and highly readable, and the characterisation is terrific as are the various voices, but as a highly plot-driven reader I did feel the lack of narrative or shape left me wanting. That said, I've barely been able to read over the last few weeks of COVID so the fact I read an entire novella in a sitting without even the lure of plot is probably an immense testament to this.
It's well written and highly readable, and the characterisation is terrific as are the various voices, but as a highly plot-driven reader I did feel the lack of narrative or shape left me wanting. That said, I've barely been able to read over the last few weeks of COVID so the fact I read an entire novella in a sitting without even the lure of plot is probably an immense testament to this.
August 9, 2017
I read this novel following its inclusion on the very strong 2016 shortlist for the wonderful Goldsmith's Prize, and have reviewed it accordingly.
The Goldsmith's Prize focuses on fiction at it's most novel. In that regard, Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun doesn't, it must be said, significantly stretch the form of the novel, but rather the subject matter.
The title of the novel comes from the poem Donkey On by Mary Ruefle
"When I am alone I make a sound
the lord does not understand.
Then he makes the sound of a helicopter receding.
Then my sound goes after his sound.
My sound sounds like an ordinary bowl of oatmeal
that can sometimes be almost liquid
and sometimes effect a crust.
His sound is small and bitter,
capable of great strength
and universal flowering,
as if the world will never stop expanding
once helicopters are gone.
Of course, I can only make one sound a year
so sometimes it sounds like
Please guess what I want to tell you
And he says
Without a mother it would be good to know English?
And I press this question into a photograph album
without a comma,
which is severely inadequate to the task of
reconstructing a life.
So I say
Perhaps I am too handmade?
And he says
It is spring, I am the peppermint king!
And then he does something generous:
he drops me a private year
wrapped in plastic,
tied up with string.
The only question is how to spend it,
so I carry it on my back
like a mule bringing ice cream
to the sun."
The poem itself is much more textually abstract than the novel itself, whose title is more a tribute to Ruefle's poetry and her subject matter of alienation.
Indeed the author's original title for this novel was “New Tales of the City”, a nod to Maupin's original, but with this novel focused on tales from San Fransisco of the type of people who typically don't feature in novels. As Ladipo Manyika has explained in an interview:
"I find myself drawn to characters that are often invisible due to the circumstances that you mention—age, socioeconomic status, gender and/or ethnicity. I’m particularly interested in how the so-called “outsiders” think of themselves in comparison to how others see them."
And that is what this novel does extremely well. The main first person narrator Dr. Morayo Da Silva is an elderly lady living in San Francisco, but one that certainly doesn't see herself as old or even act her age. As her closest friend, the much younger Sunshine observes:
"Morayo was so uninhibited, so open and unconventional in comparison to most old people. There couldn't be many women of her age who would choose to spend their savings on a beautiful sports car."
Her story, centring around a fall that leaves her temporarily in a rest home (and perhaps makes her confront her own ageing), intercepts with a number of others, all similarly "outsiders" - a homeless young girl who is a Grateful Dead fan, Reggie Bailey a Guyanan and retired economics lecturer now caring for his wife who has Parkinson's disease, Li Wei the Chinese postman, Amirah a Palestinian cake shop owner and her brother Dawud ("Amirah has told me that it it was political trouble that caused their mother to send him out of Ramullah. I imagine him as an angry teenager, throwing stones at Israeli soldiers; but nothing more serious, for how else would they have given him refuge in America?"), Bella a care-home nurse from a rich background in Nicaragua ("she's also told me that she holds a university degree, as so her brothers and sisters, many of who own mansions in Managua"), Touissant the care-home chef, and Sunshine ("It seemed no matter how hard I tried I would never be good enough for my in-laws: never lady like enough, never subservient enough, never cultured enough, but most of all, never "Indian enough.")
The novel also lapses into first person narration from these characters themselves, enabling the reader to contrast how they see Morayo vs. her own self-perception, and indeed their own stories vs. what she assumes.
Morayo herself is a retired university professor and, before that, the ex-wife of a Nigerian ambassador, well travelled with stints in London, China and India, which (she thinks) gives her an insight into the lives of those she meets.
But in one revealing episode when called by a DMV worker called Sunil "I smile, picturing the young man sitting in a call centre in India next to his metal lunch box, layered with aloo parantha and pickles. And while I listen to the gentle jazz that temporarily takes his place, I play the conversation we'll have when he returns. How surprised he'll be when I disclose that I once lived in his country, when I tell him how I miss all my friends at the spice markets.", only to find he is actually calling from Sacramento. She is also surprised he is peeved when she calls him 'Sanjay', despite herself complaining a few pages earlier of "the sullen women on the ground floor who insists on calling me Mary because she finds Morayo too hard to pronounce."
Dr. Da Silva, after coming to the US, became a university professor of literature and is a voracious reader:
"I no longer organize my books alphabetically or arrange them by colour of spine, which was what I used to do. Now the books are arranged according to which characters I believe ought to be talking to each other. That's why Heart of Darkness is next to Le Regard du Roi, and Wide Sargasso Sea sits directly above Jane Eyre. The latter used to sit next to each other but then I thought it best to redress the old colonial imbalance and give Rhys the upper hand - upper shelf."
And, having stalled on writing her own novel:
"I returned to the company of old literary friends and the characters that I had taught to so many students over the years. I went first to Blindness and July's People, because if anyone could survive it would be the doctor's wife and Maureen. And then I found myself sketching new chapters in my journal and changing the endings of stories so that some of the female characters not allowed to make it in the original version did in mine."
Which is all not quite how, given her age and current socio-economic status, she is seen by others at first glance.
Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun also explores the elderly Morayo's still lively sexuality, an unusual topic in literature, although as Ladipo Manyika has pointed out, the likes of Roth have given us plenty of the same for elderly white men.
Politics also plays a part, e.g. the devastation wrought in her previously peaceful hometown of Jos ("the place where people said 'sorry' whenever someone tripped or fell or grazed themselves because that was the linguistic mirror of a culture based on empathy") by Boko Haram.
And all of the above is deftly sketched within only 118 pages, such that really what we are reading is more of a novella.
Ladipo Manyika also took the brave and principled decision to have this, her 2nd novel, published by a small Nigerian publisher although she herself lives in the US (see Guardian article below for background) and the Goldsmith's jury are to be commended for helping bring the novel to wider attention.
Overall, a beautifully written and deceptively simple but actually rich story, and with a memorable lead character full of life and literature. One I'm delighted to have read, although I suspect it won't win the award given the very tough competition this year.
Sources:
www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2...
http://apogeejournal.org/2016/05/24/c...
The Goldsmith's Prize focuses on fiction at it's most novel. In that regard, Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun doesn't, it must be said, significantly stretch the form of the novel, but rather the subject matter.
The title of the novel comes from the poem Donkey On by Mary Ruefle
"When I am alone I make a sound
the lord does not understand.
Then he makes the sound of a helicopter receding.
Then my sound goes after his sound.
My sound sounds like an ordinary bowl of oatmeal
that can sometimes be almost liquid
and sometimes effect a crust.
His sound is small and bitter,
capable of great strength
and universal flowering,
as if the world will never stop expanding
once helicopters are gone.
Of course, I can only make one sound a year
so sometimes it sounds like
Please guess what I want to tell you
And he says
Without a mother it would be good to know English?
And I press this question into a photograph album
without a comma,
which is severely inadequate to the task of
reconstructing a life.
So I say
Perhaps I am too handmade?
And he says
It is spring, I am the peppermint king!
And then he does something generous:
he drops me a private year
wrapped in plastic,
tied up with string.
The only question is how to spend it,
so I carry it on my back
like a mule bringing ice cream
to the sun."
The poem itself is much more textually abstract than the novel itself, whose title is more a tribute to Ruefle's poetry and her subject matter of alienation.
Indeed the author's original title for this novel was “New Tales of the City”, a nod to Maupin's original, but with this novel focused on tales from San Fransisco of the type of people who typically don't feature in novels. As Ladipo Manyika has explained in an interview:
"I find myself drawn to characters that are often invisible due to the circumstances that you mention—age, socioeconomic status, gender and/or ethnicity. I’m particularly interested in how the so-called “outsiders” think of themselves in comparison to how others see them."
And that is what this novel does extremely well. The main first person narrator Dr. Morayo Da Silva is an elderly lady living in San Francisco, but one that certainly doesn't see herself as old or even act her age. As her closest friend, the much younger Sunshine observes:
"Morayo was so uninhibited, so open and unconventional in comparison to most old people. There couldn't be many women of her age who would choose to spend their savings on a beautiful sports car."
Her story, centring around a fall that leaves her temporarily in a rest home (and perhaps makes her confront her own ageing), intercepts with a number of others, all similarly "outsiders" - a homeless young girl who is a Grateful Dead fan, Reggie Bailey a Guyanan and retired economics lecturer now caring for his wife who has Parkinson's disease, Li Wei the Chinese postman, Amirah a Palestinian cake shop owner and her brother Dawud ("Amirah has told me that it it was political trouble that caused their mother to send him out of Ramullah. I imagine him as an angry teenager, throwing stones at Israeli soldiers; but nothing more serious, for how else would they have given him refuge in America?"), Bella a care-home nurse from a rich background in Nicaragua ("she's also told me that she holds a university degree, as so her brothers and sisters, many of who own mansions in Managua"), Touissant the care-home chef, and Sunshine ("It seemed no matter how hard I tried I would never be good enough for my in-laws: never lady like enough, never subservient enough, never cultured enough, but most of all, never "Indian enough.")
The novel also lapses into first person narration from these characters themselves, enabling the reader to contrast how they see Morayo vs. her own self-perception, and indeed their own stories vs. what she assumes.
Morayo herself is a retired university professor and, before that, the ex-wife of a Nigerian ambassador, well travelled with stints in London, China and India, which (she thinks) gives her an insight into the lives of those she meets.
But in one revealing episode when called by a DMV worker called Sunil "I smile, picturing the young man sitting in a call centre in India next to his metal lunch box, layered with aloo parantha and pickles. And while I listen to the gentle jazz that temporarily takes his place, I play the conversation we'll have when he returns. How surprised he'll be when I disclose that I once lived in his country, when I tell him how I miss all my friends at the spice markets.", only to find he is actually calling from Sacramento. She is also surprised he is peeved when she calls him 'Sanjay', despite herself complaining a few pages earlier of "the sullen women on the ground floor who insists on calling me Mary because she finds Morayo too hard to pronounce."
Dr. Da Silva, after coming to the US, became a university professor of literature and is a voracious reader:
"I no longer organize my books alphabetically or arrange them by colour of spine, which was what I used to do. Now the books are arranged according to which characters I believe ought to be talking to each other. That's why Heart of Darkness is next to Le Regard du Roi, and Wide Sargasso Sea sits directly above Jane Eyre. The latter used to sit next to each other but then I thought it best to redress the old colonial imbalance and give Rhys the upper hand - upper shelf."
And, having stalled on writing her own novel:
"I returned to the company of old literary friends and the characters that I had taught to so many students over the years. I went first to Blindness and July's People, because if anyone could survive it would be the doctor's wife and Maureen. And then I found myself sketching new chapters in my journal and changing the endings of stories so that some of the female characters not allowed to make it in the original version did in mine."
Which is all not quite how, given her age and current socio-economic status, she is seen by others at first glance.
Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun also explores the elderly Morayo's still lively sexuality, an unusual topic in literature, although as Ladipo Manyika has pointed out, the likes of Roth have given us plenty of the same for elderly white men.
Politics also plays a part, e.g. the devastation wrought in her previously peaceful hometown of Jos ("the place where people said 'sorry' whenever someone tripped or fell or grazed themselves because that was the linguistic mirror of a culture based on empathy") by Boko Haram.
And all of the above is deftly sketched within only 118 pages, such that really what we are reading is more of a novella.
Ladipo Manyika also took the brave and principled decision to have this, her 2nd novel, published by a small Nigerian publisher although she herself lives in the US (see Guardian article below for background) and the Goldsmith's jury are to be commended for helping bring the novel to wider attention.
Overall, a beautifully written and deceptively simple but actually rich story, and with a memorable lead character full of life and literature. One I'm delighted to have read, although I suspect it won't win the award given the very tough competition this year.
Sources:
www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2...
http://apogeejournal.org/2016/05/24/c...
April 23, 2022
I find most books too long. I prefer novels to be less than 300 pages, though 200 is ideal.😊 But I wish this book, at just 126 pages, had been longer! I was just beginning to really get into it and really enjoying it when... BAM! The End.😧 A bit disappointing.
The focus is a free-spirited, young at heart, retired Nigerian professor, now living in California, on the occasion of her 75th birthday. She's lived a full and fulfilling life, with lots of friends, but at this point in her life, her books are really her closest friends and she cherishes every one (in this, we're kindred spirits.) As a very young woman, she married a much older man—a Nigerian diplomat—but that ended long ago and her only regret is never having a child (again... kindred spirits). She hasn't had a real relationship since then but she truly enjoys the company of men—especially younger men.
It's quite a "light" book and, afterwards, I wondered for a moment what it was about—what was I meant to take from it? I can't say for certain that it had any particular meaning. I think it's just that she realizes she's now "a woman of a certain age". She thinks back on her life—the good times and the bad, the regrets and accomplishments—and decides she is NOT ready for a care home. She will not settle down, slow down, or even sit down for long. She's restless and she knows the DMV won't renew her driver's licence again, so she grabs her keys, gets into "Buttercup"—her bright yellow Porsche—and drives, fast, very fast, with no destination in mind. She just wants to go... FAST, FASTER, and feel the wind in her face.
4 "you're only as old as you feel" stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The focus is a free-spirited, young at heart, retired Nigerian professor, now living in California, on the occasion of her 75th birthday. She's lived a full and fulfilling life, with lots of friends, but at this point in her life, her books are really her closest friends and she cherishes every one (in this, we're kindred spirits.) As a very young woman, she married a much older man—a Nigerian diplomat—but that ended long ago and her only regret is never having a child (again... kindred spirits). She hasn't had a real relationship since then but she truly enjoys the company of men—especially younger men.
It's quite a "light" book and, afterwards, I wondered for a moment what it was about—what was I meant to take from it? I can't say for certain that it had any particular meaning. I think it's just that she realizes she's now "a woman of a certain age". She thinks back on her life—the good times and the bad, the regrets and accomplishments—and decides she is NOT ready for a care home. She will not settle down, slow down, or even sit down for long. She's restless and she knows the DMV won't renew her driver's licence again, so she grabs her keys, gets into "Buttercup"—her bright yellow Porsche—and drives, fast, very fast, with no destination in mind. She just wants to go... FAST, FASTER, and feel the wind in her face.
4 "you're only as old as you feel" stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
January 30, 2019
The word that keeps coming up in my head to describe this novella is "well-intentioned." It feels unfortunate to me that, in terms of literary reviews at least, "well-intentioned" is usually meant as a pejorative. Just now I don't mean it that way. I was thankful to the author for extending such graciousness and respect to both her characters and her readers. This is a very kind story--kind to its characters, and kind to its readers. The author treats her elderly protagonist with deep respect. There is maybe a bit too much whimsy for me--toe rings, a car named Buttercup. And it could be that there is a level of faith in inter-racial and cross-cultural understanding that could be taken as naive and antiquated to me, just today, writing on 8/13/17, the day after race hate on display in Charlottesville VA. But all that said, I enjoyed the respite from conflict. A more typical (less brave?) author would have amped conflict in this story as a way to make a statement, or draw more readers.
December 5, 2020
What a perfectly wonderful novella. It offers several brief but illuminating personality profiles of several characters with Morayo at the centre. Your heart will glow as you learn more about Morayo--her verve, her sexiness, her empathetic open heartedness--and twist as you watch her fierce compromises with the realities of aging.
Manyika is exceptional at impressing characters on your psyche in just a few pages via soliloquoys or dialogues with another character, often Morayo. Whether it's a homeless woman in Morayo's area, the flower seller, or the substitute chef at a rehab centre, you'll end a brief passage wanting to be their friends, wanting to know more.
This is a book I would recommend to any and everyone. I'm keen to try Manyika's other works.
Manyika is exceptional at impressing characters on your psyche in just a few pages via soliloquoys or dialogues with another character, often Morayo. Whether it's a homeless woman in Morayo's area, the flower seller, or the substitute chef at a rehab centre, you'll end a brief passage wanting to be their friends, wanting to know more.
This is a book I would recommend to any and everyone. I'm keen to try Manyika's other works.
January 26, 2018
What a fabulous title! The positives stop there, alas. This novella about a colorful 75-year-old Nigerian-American lady social-butterflying her way around San Francisco should have been right up my alley, but the bland prose—the literary equivalent of journal entries—and the ridiculous number of other characters brought in, adding pretty much zilch to the story, amounted to a huge disappointment. Enjoy the title: skip the book.
February 25, 2017
This novel is only 94 pages long, but it packs a lot into those 94 pages. It was only really as I finished it and thought back over it that I realised it is full of interesting characters and we get to hear from quite a few of them as the book switches narrators several times. It feels like there is a lot more in it than should really fit into 94 pages.
The main narrator, and the subject of passages narrated by others, is an elderly Nigerian woman. She is what would be known in my household as a "feisty old bird": she does something new for each birthday (scuba diving, getting a tattoo) and she drives a Porsche. She is wonderful: I would very much like to spend an evening having dinner with her. She is obsessed with books (I loved the bit where she says she organises her bookshelves according to which characters she thinks should be talking to each other). The novel is her story as she suffers a fall and spends time away from her home recovering.
The book is shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize which is set up to reward innovation in literature. There isn't really anything especially innovative in this book, so I did feel a bit let down from that point of view. But as a book, without the Goldsmiths factor, I really enjoyed reading it and I will remember Morayo for a long, long time.
The main narrator, and the subject of passages narrated by others, is an elderly Nigerian woman. She is what would be known in my household as a "feisty old bird": she does something new for each birthday (scuba diving, getting a tattoo) and she drives a Porsche. She is wonderful: I would very much like to spend an evening having dinner with her. She is obsessed with books (I loved the bit where she says she organises her bookshelves according to which characters she thinks should be talking to each other). The novel is her story as she suffers a fall and spends time away from her home recovering.
The book is shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize which is set up to reward innovation in literature. There isn't really anything especially innovative in this book, so I did feel a bit let down from that point of view. But as a book, without the Goldsmiths factor, I really enjoyed reading it and I will remember Morayo for a long, long time.
June 14, 2018
!!! https://africanbookaddict.com/2018/06...
More like 3.5 stars.
Decent, really easy-going novella centered around 75 y/o Dr. Morayo, who’s a retired Literature professor. You’d never believe Morayo’s a senior citizen as she carries herself as if she’s in her 40’s - she dances, enjoys music, wants a tattoo, has perfect memory, has a healthy sexual appetite, still drives her Porsche, has lots and lots of books that occupy her time, is childless (and not broken by it) - Morayo is basically old lady goals.
- full review on the book blog, linked above -
More like 3.5 stars.
Decent, really easy-going novella centered around 75 y/o Dr. Morayo, who’s a retired Literature professor. You’d never believe Morayo’s a senior citizen as she carries herself as if she’s in her 40’s - she dances, enjoys music, wants a tattoo, has perfect memory, has a healthy sexual appetite, still drives her Porsche, has lots and lots of books that occupy her time, is childless (and not broken by it) - Morayo is basically old lady goals.
- full review on the book blog, linked above -
March 16, 2021
A pleasant novel involving the first person narrative of an aging Nigerian woman based in the USA. I thought this was an easy read and pleasant on the eyes, but I don’t see what makes it exceptional. There is very little tension to the narrative. I don’t feel like I learnt anything or am going to approach the world with new eyes after readinf it. I don’t really see the point in having read the novel other than to bask in the vividness of the voice.
And believe me, the voice is compelling, and well done, and highly individuated, but if it’s going nowhere, I don’t see the point of the story other than to be an isolated character story.
Hard to say I would recommend it, but I do think I get a part of its charm.
And believe me, the voice is compelling, and well done, and highly individuated, but if it’s going nowhere, I don’t see the point of the story other than to be an isolated character story.
Hard to say I would recommend it, but I do think I get a part of its charm.
July 8, 2022
While it's a bit charming, it failed to engage my tastes though the San Francisco location kept me going.
An elderly Nigerian woman living in a friendly neighborhood who's warmth and joy is magnetic, reflects on her childhood in Nigeria, married life and other odd things as she moves forward into her elder years. Driven by themes of love, loss and friendship, there's really not much more to it.
An elderly Nigerian woman living in a friendly neighborhood who's warmth and joy is magnetic, reflects on her childhood in Nigeria, married life and other odd things as she moves forward into her elder years. Driven by themes of love, loss and friendship, there's really not much more to it.
June 8, 2018
The key character is Dr Morayo Da Silva, an elderly Nigerian emigrant living in San Francisco – ex-wife of a Nigerian ambassador who subsequently fell in love with a Brazilian cultural attaché, then a professor of literature and still a voracious reader (and re-writer of books – both in style and to explore alternate and more positive endings for female characters). Her once poor but otherwise idyllic home town in Nigeria is now the scene of religious massacres. She still sees herself as young, indulging in sexual fantasies, driving a sports car and dressing extravagantly.
In the only real plot in the book she falls over and ends up in a care home. The book is narrated in the first person, but only sometimes in her voice and sometimes in the voices of those with which she interacts including: a homeless young girl; Reggie Bailey a retired Caribbean economics lecturer now caring for his wife who has Parkinson's disease and is in the same home as Morayo, with whom a mutual attraction starts to form; a Palestinian cake shop owner; Bella a care-home nurse from a rich background in Nicaragua; Touissant the care-home stand-in chef; Sunshine – her much younger friend with a symbotic relationship of care. Through them in addition to their own stories we also see Morayo as others see her – amazing for her age but still elderly and frail.
Although in my view (although clearly not that of the judges) lacking the innovation that the Goldsmith requires, this is a very enjoyable story with a memorable lead character and remarkable for being dense on characterisation in less than 120 pages.
In the only real plot in the book she falls over and ends up in a care home. The book is narrated in the first person, but only sometimes in her voice and sometimes in the voices of those with which she interacts including: a homeless young girl; Reggie Bailey a retired Caribbean economics lecturer now caring for his wife who has Parkinson's disease and is in the same home as Morayo, with whom a mutual attraction starts to form; a Palestinian cake shop owner; Bella a care-home nurse from a rich background in Nicaragua; Touissant the care-home stand-in chef; Sunshine – her much younger friend with a symbotic relationship of care. Through them in addition to their own stories we also see Morayo as others see her – amazing for her age but still elderly and frail.
Although in my view (although clearly not that of the judges) lacking the innovation that the Goldsmith requires, this is a very enjoyable story with a memorable lead character and remarkable for being dense on characterisation in less than 120 pages.
January 3, 2018
This was a lovely little novella about Morayo, an older Nigerian woman living in San Francisco who experiences a fall, goes to an assisted care home to recover, and muses on the friendships that she relies on in the absences of a nuclear family close to her.
This is not really a book about a plot, it's more of a character study. It's almost Woolfian in its stream-of-consciousness style, but we get the points of view of not just Morayo, but also the Palestinian shopkeeper she befriends, her neighbor, an aide at the home, a homeless woman she crosses paths with, and her ex-husband back in Nigeria.
My only complaint about this book, really, is that I wanted more. It's just under 120 pages, but it presents an engaging, complex character and I wanted to spend more time with her. I wanted to see more of her life -- how she got to San Francisco, how she developed these friendships, what happened with the two men in her past. I think Sarah Manyika could have easily written a 400-page novel about this woman, and I would have happily plowed right through it.
This is not really a book about a plot, it's more of a character study. It's almost Woolfian in its stream-of-consciousness style, but we get the points of view of not just Morayo, but also the Palestinian shopkeeper she befriends, her neighbor, an aide at the home, a homeless woman she crosses paths with, and her ex-husband back in Nigeria.
My only complaint about this book, really, is that I wanted more. It's just under 120 pages, but it presents an engaging, complex character and I wanted to spend more time with her. I wanted to see more of her life -- how she got to San Francisco, how she developed these friendships, what happened with the two men in her past. I think Sarah Manyika could have easily written a 400-page novel about this woman, and I would have happily plowed right through it.
September 19, 2018
Update: I read this a second time around and loved it even more. Upgraded to the full 5 stars ;)
This was my first novella so I didn't know what to expect from the format. It's safe to say that this was a lovely introduction. Sarah packs so much life & personality into her characters in so few pages, I felt like I had gotten to know them over a longer period of time than I actually did. She is a master of descriptions and setting the scene. I'm withholding one star because I wish we got to hear more from some of the characters. If the aim of a novella is to leave you wanting more, this definitely achieved that.
P.S. If you get a chance to see Sarah read live, definitely go! She takes on the mannerisms and inflections of her characters, it's like watching a one person theater production. She's amazing!
This was my first novella so I didn't know what to expect from the format. It's safe to say that this was a lovely introduction. Sarah packs so much life & personality into her characters in so few pages, I felt like I had gotten to know them over a longer period of time than I actually did. She is a master of descriptions and setting the scene. I'm withholding one star because I wish we got to hear more from some of the characters. If the aim of a novella is to leave you wanting more, this definitely achieved that.
P.S. If you get a chance to see Sarah read live, definitely go! She takes on the mannerisms and inflections of her characters, it's like watching a one person theater production. She's amazing!
June 3, 2017
This was definitely a pleasant read. A contemplative book that centers the experience of Morayo Da Silva, a Nigerian who is in her seventies living in San Francisco, amongst the narratives of the people she crosses paths with. It was a unique experience reading a book that is primarily character-driven, especially one that is elderly & contemplating what it means to age and lose one's independence. If Morayo hadn't been a vibrant character with reflections that were engaging and perspectives that were insightful, this novella would most likely have been a disaster. In spite of the protagonist's strength and likability, I did find my attention drifting every once in a while in the absence of a focused plot.
Regardless, solid 4 stars. I would recommend this if you're looking for an easy read that is focused on characters, and not an action-packed plot.
Regardless, solid 4 stars. I would recommend this if you're looking for an easy read that is focused on characters, and not an action-packed plot.
May 13, 2018
Morayo Da Silva er en frigjort kvinde fra Nigeria, hun bor alene i sin lejlighed i et hipt område i San Fransisco, og hun har brugt sin opsparing på at købe en lækker vintage-Porsche. Hun er en stærk kvinde, som ikke er bange for at gøre opmærksom på sig selv, når hun valser rundt i sine farvestrålende rober fra hjemlandet og flirter lidt med de mænd, hun møder. Morayo er glad for livet, og hun vil have mest muligt ud af det. Hendes bøger er hendes bedste venner, og de er smukt arrangeret på bogreolen, så personerne i dem kan tale sammen.
Sjældent har jeg elsket en karakter så højt, som jeg elsker Professor Morayo Da Silva. Den snart 75-årige sprudlende kvinde har appetit på livet, kærlighed til bøger og et væsen, der betager.
Du kan læse meget mere i min anmeldelse lige her: https://bookmeupscotty.blogspot.dk/20...
Sjældent har jeg elsket en karakter så højt, som jeg elsker Professor Morayo Da Silva. Den snart 75-årige sprudlende kvinde har appetit på livet, kærlighed til bøger og et væsen, der betager.
Du kan læse meget mere i min anmeldelse lige her: https://bookmeupscotty.blogspot.dk/20...
November 7, 2016
As I primarily read this (indeed, would undoubtedly have never known of its existence otherwise), due to its inclusion in this year's Goldsmiths Prize nominees, given for innovation in the novel form, I can't say I found it all that different in structure (as multiple first person narrators have been around for quite some time). What IS different is the main character, who is a delightful older Nigerian woman coming to terms with her encroaching old age, but maintaining her feisty zest for life despite such obstacles. It was a pleasure to spend time in her company, and the short length of the book belies how much is crammed into it. And having lived most of my life in the San Francisco Bay Area, I loved Manyika's descriptions of my native habitat!
November 26, 2016
Like a Mule is a beautifully crafted novella about ageing and loss of control.
Dr Morayo Da Silva is an elderly Nigerian woman, living in San Francisco after a lifetime of reading, exploration and a failed marriage to a diplomat. She is wealthy and classy. She is used to being in control and tends to look disdainfully on those who lack her sophistication. Morayo is kind, yes, but also deeply judgemental. So it is a shock to her system to find herself in hospital, dependent on the kindness of those she might once have been able to take pity on - the single mothers, nurses, porters and people she never even meets.
The real joy in the novella is Sarah Ladipo Manyika's ability to create a world from a single line. A line about books, perhaps, or art, or furniture is able to tell the reader so much about Morayo's life and values and prejudices. Every line is crafted so carefully and reads so perfectly.
The narration does strange things. Different characters take it in turns to narrate chapters - a divide that is not clearly flagged and can lead to some puzzlement initially. Even stranger is that the narration can change hands within chapters. It i therefore not always clear who is narrating and about whom they are speaking. This builds up a feeling of a world that is harder to control - just as Morayo is finding herself helpless within her own world. And like Morayo, the reader has a choice of fighting it or going along with it smiling. I chose the latter.
Like a Mule is a referential novel, referencing much of African culture, literature and art. It portrays Nigeria as a vibrant society; Lagos is a city that Morayo misses despite having achieved wealth and comfort in San Francisco. It is refreshing to see a character who is proud to be African and who is able to see both the strengths and weaknesses of her new homeland. Some of the references may be lost on readers who are unfamiliar with Nigerian culture (the title, for example, comes from a poem whose relevance is not obvious) but there is so much joy to be had in the writing even without getting every reference.
This is short - and probably merits a second read.
Dr Morayo Da Silva is an elderly Nigerian woman, living in San Francisco after a lifetime of reading, exploration and a failed marriage to a diplomat. She is wealthy and classy. She is used to being in control and tends to look disdainfully on those who lack her sophistication. Morayo is kind, yes, but also deeply judgemental. So it is a shock to her system to find herself in hospital, dependent on the kindness of those she might once have been able to take pity on - the single mothers, nurses, porters and people she never even meets.
The real joy in the novella is Sarah Ladipo Manyika's ability to create a world from a single line. A line about books, perhaps, or art, or furniture is able to tell the reader so much about Morayo's life and values and prejudices. Every line is crafted so carefully and reads so perfectly.
The narration does strange things. Different characters take it in turns to narrate chapters - a divide that is not clearly flagged and can lead to some puzzlement initially. Even stranger is that the narration can change hands within chapters. It i therefore not always clear who is narrating and about whom they are speaking. This builds up a feeling of a world that is harder to control - just as Morayo is finding herself helpless within her own world. And like Morayo, the reader has a choice of fighting it or going along with it smiling. I chose the latter.
Like a Mule is a referential novel, referencing much of African culture, literature and art. It portrays Nigeria as a vibrant society; Lagos is a city that Morayo misses despite having achieved wealth and comfort in San Francisco. It is refreshing to see a character who is proud to be African and who is able to see both the strengths and weaknesses of her new homeland. Some of the references may be lost on readers who are unfamiliar with Nigerian culture (the title, for example, comes from a poem whose relevance is not obvious) but there is so much joy to be had in the writing even without getting every reference.
This is short - and probably merits a second read.
November 26, 2018
(3.5) Morayo Da Silva is an unlikely heroine: soon to turn 75, she’s a former English professor from Nigeria who hopped between countries with her ambassador husband but now lives alone in San Francisco. As she goes about her errands, planning her birthday and buying flowers for herself (I was right to think of Mrs. Dalloway, whom Manyika references directly on the top of page 22), Morayo gives us glimpses into her past, including her affair with Antonio. The first-person narration switches around to give the perspectives of peripheral figures like Dawud the shopkeeper, a homeless woman named Sage, and Sunshine, the young friend who helps Morayo clean her apartment and get her affairs in order after she has a fall and goes to a care home. These shifts in point of view can be abrupt, even mid-chapter, and are a little confusing. They also mean that, especially after she enters the nursing home, we hear more from others – the husband of a patient with dementia, a substitute chef – than we do from Morayo herself, which seems a bit of a shame.
However, Morayo is a wonderful character, inspiring in her determination to live flamboyantly: “All the more reason then, to dress with panache while I still can.” I also sympathized with her love of books, which she arranges to put the protagonists in conversation, and her distress when Sunshine hires a cleaner who throws out tatty books and duplicate copies. “That’s my life, Sunshine! My books!” she cries, later steeling herself to concede, “Books can always be replaced” – “how difficult this is for me to acknowledge, let alone believe.” But the discarded books end up going to a good use, and as Morayo heads back home it’s clear she’s not going to give up her independence easily. I would happily have read twice as many pages about her adventures.
However, Morayo is a wonderful character, inspiring in her determination to live flamboyantly: “All the more reason then, to dress with panache while I still can.” I also sympathized with her love of books, which she arranges to put the protagonists in conversation, and her distress when Sunshine hires a cleaner who throws out tatty books and duplicate copies. “That’s my life, Sunshine! My books!” she cries, later steeling herself to concede, “Books can always be replaced” – “how difficult this is for me to acknowledge, let alone believe.” But the discarded books end up going to a good use, and as Morayo heads back home it’s clear she’s not going to give up her independence easily. I would happily have read twice as many pages about her adventures.
October 3, 2016
magnificent. i feel like i've just read lord of the flies when it just came out and nobody has heard of it, knowing that it's magnificent and important and new. Being put in someone else's shoes, experiencing a life that is not your own, and understanding that life, this is why i read fiction.
October 1, 2021
I really enjoy reading books that explore different aspects of ageing through individual voices. That’s what drew me to Sarah Ladipo Manyika’s novella “Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun.” Morayo is a 75-year-old Nigerian woman living in San Francisco. She is a retired English professor with a touch of whimsy and oddball cuteness. She is fiercely independent and likes to chat to people, listen to their stories. One day, she has a fall and needs to be rushed to the hospital, which shakes up her otherwise, fairly, uneventful days.
Moving at a gentle pace, Morayo invites you into her life. Slowly, you piece together a portrait of a woman with a colourful past. She was married. She had a lover. She wistfully imagines returning to her hometown in Nigeria but is reluctant to leave the cosmopolitan conveniences of her current city. All in all, Morayo is a person I would have found quite interesting to talk to.
I found the treatment of ageing exceptionally refreshing. When we think of a 75-year-old woman we unconsciously tend to picture someone frail, needing assistance. Au contraire, Morayo is spirited and strong. She might have aged but she is not old and she isn’t devoid of desires. She might be alone but not lonely for most parts. She has some senior moments, but she is capable of taking care of herself.
I thought there were a tad too many characters and I found the jump in narrations confusing at times. Other than that, this short character study is a delight with its spare, elegant prose, and quiet meditations on life both past and present.
Moving at a gentle pace, Morayo invites you into her life. Slowly, you piece together a portrait of a woman with a colourful past. She was married. She had a lover. She wistfully imagines returning to her hometown in Nigeria but is reluctant to leave the cosmopolitan conveniences of her current city. All in all, Morayo is a person I would have found quite interesting to talk to.
I found the treatment of ageing exceptionally refreshing. When we think of a 75-year-old woman we unconsciously tend to picture someone frail, needing assistance. Au contraire, Morayo is spirited and strong. She might have aged but she is not old and she isn’t devoid of desires. She might be alone but not lonely for most parts. She has some senior moments, but she is capable of taking care of herself.
I thought there were a tad too many characters and I found the jump in narrations confusing at times. Other than that, this short character study is a delight with its spare, elegant prose, and quiet meditations on life both past and present.
March 28, 2019
A reading of an extract of this novel created an anticipation for more, an expectation of an enjoyable afternoon getting to know Dr Morayo Da Silva. As such rather than wait for a soft copy, I hastened to purchase a Nook version.
My expectation was more than met. Sarah Ladipo Manyika, thank you for introducing us to Dr Morayo. On a number of levels, I found this spritely, adventurous, effusive and irreverent 74 year old lady a character with traits that I would love to inculcate into my own life. To merely define her by her gender or ethnicity diminishes the import of her story. Yet at the same time perhaps it is her gender and life experiences as a woman of color that has helped shape that character. She challenges us (especially as we mature) to view life with an openness and inquisitiveness that would transform the notion of aging from the often pushed narrative of drudgery and merely waiting to expire to that of a daily anticipation of what life still has in store for us to enjoy. The author keeps it realistic however by introducing some of the challenges of aging. Ms Manyika does not sugar coat the realities of being a septuagenarian. In it all, and in spite of it all, the spirit of daily seeking the joyous in life allows Dr Morayo to still project the hope and enthusiasm we all need for life to continue to be meaningful. In this the wisdom in the title of the book becomes evident. For many, as they age, are like mules, carrying the blessing of increased longevity as a load which in truth is fast expiring, when they should be busy savoring that blessing. Like Morayo Da Silva.
My expectation was more than met. Sarah Ladipo Manyika, thank you for introducing us to Dr Morayo. On a number of levels, I found this spritely, adventurous, effusive and irreverent 74 year old lady a character with traits that I would love to inculcate into my own life. To merely define her by her gender or ethnicity diminishes the import of her story. Yet at the same time perhaps it is her gender and life experiences as a woman of color that has helped shape that character. She challenges us (especially as we mature) to view life with an openness and inquisitiveness that would transform the notion of aging from the often pushed narrative of drudgery and merely waiting to expire to that of a daily anticipation of what life still has in store for us to enjoy. The author keeps it realistic however by introducing some of the challenges of aging. Ms Manyika does not sugar coat the realities of being a septuagenarian. In it all, and in spite of it all, the spirit of daily seeking the joyous in life allows Dr Morayo to still project the hope and enthusiasm we all need for life to continue to be meaningful. In this the wisdom in the title of the book becomes evident. For many, as they age, are like mules, carrying the blessing of increased longevity as a load which in truth is fast expiring, when they should be busy savoring that blessing. Like Morayo Da Silva.
December 14, 2019
Maybe Morayo is writing about life ending. But i think, maybe she is writing about life beginning?
Una mujer vieja - still sexy without being pathetic. An incredibly difficult line to figure out, much less. Happy living with her books and papers and memories; surrounded by (the old) San Francisco of tolerance and real diversity, the one in Tales of the City. (That also, sadly, now a memory).
But now our protagonista is writing a love song to San Francisco - as it was:
“Besides, this is a city where people walk their dogs and take their kids to school in their pyjamas.” *
As it was...When eccentrics, artists and immigrants could still afford to live here & play their music without some newly arrived techie complaining that “it’s too loud”. It’s a city, jerk.
One street character Morayo had passed in the past, actually found the books on Africa (that had been (heartbreakingly) “cleaned” out of M’s home by a “helpful” friend and placed in the bin) - thought “Morayo” was a place name, rather than a person. This homeless wonder delight, talking to herself, after spending some time looking at her new found library, believes the books were placed just there “lovingly” for neighbors to enjoy:
"I had a sleeping bag. i gave that away. It's so good to give.”
“Giving!”.....(she has many examples of the everything she’s given away).... “That act of kindness is A-MAY-ZING. Amazing! Be kind! ... it's very amazing. Sometimes we don't take the time to know people as people and maybe someone's heart is broken in some way or another, you know.
And of course the books ripped from their homes in Mor- RAY-oh carefully lovingly placed near neighbors they’d enjoy - only to be cranked into lines arbitrary and painful. Or removed completely….”
And the moral of the story (clear at the end) is important: NO thank you, or, depending on your style, F*%K you, or just disappear if they don’t deserve your precious time.
Now, sweetie, you take that and tuck it away in your bra, ok?
*See Claire?? i wasn't the only one!!
Una mujer vieja - still sexy without being pathetic. An incredibly difficult line to figure out, much less. Happy living with her books and papers and memories; surrounded by (the old) San Francisco of tolerance and real diversity, the one in Tales of the City. (That also, sadly, now a memory).
But now our protagonista is writing a love song to San Francisco - as it was:
“Besides, this is a city where people walk their dogs and take their kids to school in their pyjamas.” *
As it was...When eccentrics, artists and immigrants could still afford to live here & play their music without some newly arrived techie complaining that “it’s too loud”. It’s a city, jerk.
One street character Morayo had passed in the past, actually found the books on Africa (that had been (heartbreakingly) “cleaned” out of M’s home by a “helpful” friend and placed in the bin) - thought “Morayo” was a place name, rather than a person. This homeless wonder delight, talking to herself, after spending some time looking at her new found library, believes the books were placed just there “lovingly” for neighbors to enjoy:
"I had a sleeping bag. i gave that away. It's so good to give.”
“Giving!”.....(she has many examples of the everything she’s given away).... “That act of kindness is A-MAY-ZING. Amazing! Be kind! ... it's very amazing. Sometimes we don't take the time to know people as people and maybe someone's heart is broken in some way or another, you know.
And of course the books ripped from their homes in Mor- RAY-oh carefully lovingly placed near neighbors they’d enjoy - only to be cranked into lines arbitrary and painful. Or removed completely….”
And the moral of the story (clear at the end) is important: NO thank you, or, depending on your style, F*%K you, or just disappear if they don’t deserve your precious time.
Now, sweetie, you take that and tuck it away in your bra, ok?
*See Claire?? i wasn't the only one!!
November 21, 2022
3.5
¿Cómo se llega a la tercera edad? ¿Cuál es el peso de los recuerdos? No creo que la novela me haya respondido –no es su función– pero sí me dio un pequeño y personal panorama con “Morayo” (Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun, 2016), de la novelista y ensayista nigeriana Sarah Ladipo Manyika.
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La novela trata las vivencias de una mujer que, al igual que su autora, es ex profesora de Literatura, nigeriana y reside en San Francisco, EE.UU. Morayo tiene 75 años y se niega a que su edad defina qué puede hacer y qué no. A lo largo de la lectura conoceremos cómo piensa y cómo fue su vida, pero también la veremos a través de los ojos de otros personajes que interactúan con ella –lo cual es enriquecedor–. Detalle no menor: la protagonista escribe y habla mucho sobre ese proceso.⠀
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Si bien Morayo tiene un genial desparpajo para contar lo que le sucede y lo que le sucedió, el libro no está librado de sus puntos dramáticos. Los problemas de salud, la soledad y el desarraigo son temas que no se esquivan. La nostalgia por ver a personas que ya no están y lugares lejanos es una constante en los pensamientos de esta mujer. Por supuesto, la literatura también tiene su espacio y menciona varios títulos –en la foto hay dos de ellos–. Los libros son compañeros silenciosos que no la abandonan, pero no son personas. Existe una palabra que a mí me gusta mucho: anagnórisis. Es el momento en que un personaje se da cuenta de algo que estaba oculto o que no había pensado. Y ese momento le llega a Morayo, como nos llega a todos en la vida.⠀
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Me costó encontrarle algo flojo a esta novela, pero al finalizarla me di cuenta de que me había gustado lo justo y necesario. Creo que esperaba más del uso del lenguaje y de la historia y obtuve poco de las dos cosas. Como siempre, aliento a que lean y no tomen mi opinión como algo incontestable.⠀
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💡Mientras escribía esta reseña no dejé de pensar en “Peces tropicales”, de Doreen Baingana, donde una de las protagonistas viaja de Uganda a EE.UU.⠀
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¿Cómo se llega a la tercera edad? ¿Cuál es el peso de los recuerdos? No creo que la novela me haya respondido –no es su función– pero sí me dio un pequeño y personal panorama con “Morayo” (Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun, 2016), de la novelista y ensayista nigeriana Sarah Ladipo Manyika.
⠀
La novela trata las vivencias de una mujer que, al igual que su autora, es ex profesora de Literatura, nigeriana y reside en San Francisco, EE.UU. Morayo tiene 75 años y se niega a que su edad defina qué puede hacer y qué no. A lo largo de la lectura conoceremos cómo piensa y cómo fue su vida, pero también la veremos a través de los ojos de otros personajes que interactúan con ella –lo cual es enriquecedor–. Detalle no menor: la protagonista escribe y habla mucho sobre ese proceso.⠀
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Si bien Morayo tiene un genial desparpajo para contar lo que le sucede y lo que le sucedió, el libro no está librado de sus puntos dramáticos. Los problemas de salud, la soledad y el desarraigo son temas que no se esquivan. La nostalgia por ver a personas que ya no están y lugares lejanos es una constante en los pensamientos de esta mujer. Por supuesto, la literatura también tiene su espacio y menciona varios títulos –en la foto hay dos de ellos–. Los libros son compañeros silenciosos que no la abandonan, pero no son personas. Existe una palabra que a mí me gusta mucho: anagnórisis. Es el momento en que un personaje se da cuenta de algo que estaba oculto o que no había pensado. Y ese momento le llega a Morayo, como nos llega a todos en la vida.⠀
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Me costó encontrarle algo flojo a esta novela, pero al finalizarla me di cuenta de que me había gustado lo justo y necesario. Creo que esperaba más del uso del lenguaje y de la historia y obtuve poco de las dos cosas. Como siempre, aliento a que lean y no tomen mi opinión como algo incontestable.⠀
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💡Mientras escribía esta reseña no dejé de pensar en “Peces tropicales”, de Doreen Baingana, donde una de las protagonistas viaja de Uganda a EE.UU.⠀
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January 8, 2020
Sometimes sheer simplicity can be powerful. In the case of Like a Mule.. this economy works in the book’s favour. Ladipo Manyika uses sparse sentences and simple language to convey her message. Yet she adds digressions to the narrative which gives the novel some complexity. In the process the book has a memorable main protagonist.
Meet Morayo da Silva. She takes no bullshit, can be outspoken, has a temper and is now living life to the full. Oh, she’s also 75 years old and like her Mrs. Dalloway she is preparing for her party by choosing the perfect shoes. Unlike Mrs.Dalloway she is also choosing a spot on her body for a tattoo.
Da Silva slips and this is where the book takes off. We then get glimpses of her character from different perspectives: a cook, a postman, her ex husband and others. The end result is that da Silva did lead a varied and eventful life.
Also, though, like a Mule could also function as a meditation on aging. Once da Silva enters a rehabilitation centre, due to her accident she starts realising that she is an old person and is more aware that the people around her are also suffering from complications that come with old age. This does not mean she loses her lust for live but becomes aware that she can stay young.
Like a Mule… (the title is based off a poem) is a deceptively simple book. It also doubles up as a fantastic read as the reader can put together the full picture of da Silva. It does work as a game and is playful but there’s more if you want to dig deep. Personally I see it as a good introduction for people who are scared of experimental literature. Like a Mule bringing Ice Cream to the Sun can prove that one can be clever without alienating the reader.
Meet Morayo da Silva. She takes no bullshit, can be outspoken, has a temper and is now living life to the full. Oh, she’s also 75 years old and like her Mrs. Dalloway she is preparing for her party by choosing the perfect shoes. Unlike Mrs.Dalloway she is also choosing a spot on her body for a tattoo.
Da Silva slips and this is where the book takes off. We then get glimpses of her character from different perspectives: a cook, a postman, her ex husband and others. The end result is that da Silva did lead a varied and eventful life.
Also, though, like a Mule could also function as a meditation on aging. Once da Silva enters a rehabilitation centre, due to her accident she starts realising that she is an old person and is more aware that the people around her are also suffering from complications that come with old age. This does not mean she loses her lust for live but becomes aware that she can stay young.
Like a Mule… (the title is based off a poem) is a deceptively simple book. It also doubles up as a fantastic read as the reader can put together the full picture of da Silva. It does work as a game and is playful but there’s more if you want to dig deep. Personally I see it as a good introduction for people who are scared of experimental literature. Like a Mule bringing Ice Cream to the Sun can prove that one can be clever without alienating the reader.
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