All Shades of Iberibe

by Kasimma

In the Nigerian language Igbo "iberibe" means "messed up." This stunning short story collection by Kasimma grabs readers and pulls them into the cities and villages of today's Nigeria. Against the glare of smart phone screens, spirits of the dead flicker, elders admonish their grown children, rituals are done in secret, and the scars of war are just below the surface in the lives of astonishingly vivid characters. Kasimma's stories effortlessly inhabit the dark, alluring, and beautiful spaces between mystical Nigerian traditions and our strange contemporary condition.

Genres: Short Stories, African Literature, Fiction

212 pages, Paperback

Published November 2, 2021

Reviews

[Taylor Patton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved these stories. I found myself so totally engrossed in each one, I didn’t want them to end, even though I didn’t always understand every word since there is the occasional Yoruba or other dialect written for conversation between characters. In 11 or so pages I was so engrossed in the story I was reading—I wanted more. There was the perfect amount of character development for a short story and each plot was so riveting. Kasimma has multiple novels begging to be be written here. I can’t wait to read more!

[Auggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished All Shades of Iberibe and whew… this book is such a chaotic, hilarious, painful, deeply Nigerian rooted 😂😭

First of all, this author definitely wrote this book for Igbos tbh. You can’t tell me anything. From the language, the humor, the family dynamics, the subtle insults, the village energy, the random madness that somehow still makes sense… it felt so familiar.

And for context, “Iberibe” literally means stupidity 😭 which honestly prepares you for the madness inside this collection of short stories. Every story feels like someone’s uncle sat you down after Christmas rice and said, “come and hear what happened…”

What I loved most is how the stories balance humor with serious social commentary. One minute you’re laughing, next minute you’re staring at the wall questioning humanity. The writing is sharp, witty, raw and very unapologetically Nigerian. The characters feel real, flawed and sometimes painfully relatable.

I loved most of the stories but my top 3 are:
• Jesus Yard
• Life of His Wife
• All Shades of Senselessness — this one broke me. Honestly. I had to pause after finishing it because wow.

The storytelling style is simple but layered. Nothing feels forced. It’s one of those books that reminds you how powerful African storytelling can be when it’s done authentically.

If you like books with culture, satire, dark humor, emotional depth and stories that sound like gist from home, you’ll probably enjoy this one a lot.

[Beth Mowbray · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

📚B IS FOR BOOK REVIEW📚

📔Title: All Shades of Iberibe
🖋Author: Kassima
🗓Pub Date: 11.02.21

🗂Genre:
Literary fiction, short stories

📖Plot:
In this collection of 14 stories, Nigerian writer Kassima truly shares all shades — a stunning range — of iberibe (the Igbo word meaning “messed up.”) Each surprising, provocative, and thought-provoking in it’s own way, these stories beautifully blend Nigerian cultural traditions with present-day situations. A few of my favorites include: “This Man” (a woman who died during war guides a newly dead man from his funeral into the afterlife, while she stays behind seeking revenge on the government for their past horrors); “Ogbanje” (after losing three children, a man’s father urges him to believe that he is dealing with ogbanje — “evil” — spirits and must step outside of Western medicine if he wants a child to live); and “All Shades of Senselessness” (a father will stop at nothing to ensure he has a male heir).

🗝Themes:
Nigerian tradition juxtaposed against the modern day, religion/spiritual beliefs, resilience and strength, the simultaneous beauty and pain of life, the impact of past events such as war on present day/lives

‼️ Trigger Warning:
Murder, death, rape, war, natural disasters

💭Thoughts:
This is a beautifully written, propulsive collection; one I know I will return to in the future. It is the type of writing which is so layered it will likely deliver new messages and an enhanced experience with each reading. Kassima fears nothing, leaving it all on the page. The situations presented here will surprise readers in more than any than one, as will the biting commentary woven within.

🗣Recommended for those who like:
The topics are very different, but if you are looking for a hard hitting story collection like The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, where each story is better than the last, then this one will definitely keep you turning the pages!

Thanks to the publisher and publicist for gifting me a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

[Idens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review coming up later
***
Review date: 31/07/23

A 3.5🌟
When I think of this book here's the first word that comes to mind: Polarising.
All Shades of Iberibe is a collection of short stories that touches up on a vast array of themes although there's a common thread running throughout the book. Each story depicts to some extent the grotesque, carries a bit of surrealism and forces the reader to question the reality of the events happening on these pages.
I use the word 𝘗𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 because in some stories, although the premises were interesting enough, the writing itself felt a bit "off" as if not suited to the author's taste and was merely an attempt at trying something different. This can be seen in the story 𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘵 𝘍𝘢𝘤𝘦s, a story about an outcast and how she came to be. Maybe I'm overanalyzing it but that particular story didn't come off as natural.
Some stories too felt like they could've been expanded upon.
Anyways the clear standout here comes in 𝘛𝘏𝘐𝘚 𝘔𝘈𝘕. A story about the forgotten victims of the Civil war and how the spirits are no longer able to cross over because the normal ritual rites haven't been observed. Here they occupy the earth with us, brimming with rage, influencing the decisions of our leaders, slowing down the country's progress.
𝘼 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙈𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙮 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚.

[Toluwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting collection of stories. I find Igbo culture very interesting so, I was definitely going to read this. As expected, the book did not disappoint.
I found a lot of the stories quite intriguing and even though complex themes were explored, I had no trouble understanding and following each of the stories.
That said, there were one or two stories that felt out of place in this collection but they were good, all the same.

[Ofureme · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loveeee this book and it's infusion of Igbo cosmologies and ontologies. I felt some of the stories in here was too short and I needed some sort of consolation (like Caked Memories and All Shades of Senselessness). Also, I felt some stories in here shouldn't have been added to this collection, but great collection anyways!

[Ginika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some stories in this book were sub-par particularly the one that lent this book it's name. "Shit faces" seemed juvenile so did "coffee addict". The few remarkable ones were "this man" and " worthless strength". The writer seemed well in her elements when writing these two.
There's room for improvement.

[Kofoworola Emily (Read Till You Drop) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was going to be a funny, lighthearted book because of the title . And the first two or so stories were but then things started to get dark.

I still mostly enjoyed the writing. Jesus’ Yard was my favourite story; I absolutely enjoyed it.

[Sonia's Tales · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is exactly what the title is...all shades of senseless.

A collection of short stories I enjoyed so much. However, some stories didn't go well for me.

But I recommend and I know you'll enjoy it too.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite my usual detest of short stories, this collection was outstanding.

[Shelah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it

[Dorah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A heavy and chaotic read but I absolutely loved it💯.

[Adam Jubert · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @ 86 pages