Say You're One of Them
by
Uwem Akpan
Each story in this jubilantly acclaimed collection pays testament to the wisdom and resilience of children, even in the face of the most agonizing circumstances.
A family living in a makeshift shanty in urban Kenya scurries to find gifts of any kind for the impending Christmas holiday. A Rwandan girl relates her family's struggles to maintain a facade of normalcy amid unspe...more
A family living in a makeshift shanty in urban Kenya scurries to find gifts of any kind for the impending Christmas holiday. A Rwandan girl relates her family's struggles to maintain a facade of normalcy amid unspe...more
Hardcover, 358 pages
Published
September 18th 2009
by Little, Brown and Company
(first published June 2008)
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Its difficult to justify giving this book five stars as there are so many problems with it.
Firstly, two of the stories are novellas of considerable length and extremely difficult to read. This is because, in an effort to give local flavour to the dialogue, letters are transposed, French words, local words and words that seem to have no meaning but are used for emphasis pepper the text. It does actually add to book, but it means its a slow read and there is no natural rhythm to the speech.
Second...more
Firstly, two of the stories are novellas of considerable length and extremely difficult to read. This is because, in an effort to give local flavour to the dialogue, letters are transposed, French words, local words and words that seem to have no meaning but are used for emphasis pepper the text. It does actually add to book, but it means its a slow read and there is no natural rhythm to the speech.
Second...more
Uwem Akpan graphically portrays horrendous conditions in several African countries -- child trafficking; prostitution; rape; murder, religious conflict; Sharia-mandated amputations; starvation; etc. These stories are no doubt grounded in fact, but two defects in the collection detract from its potential power. First, the various narrators describe terrible circumstances in such a detached reportorial, matter-of-fact way that the lack of emotional engagement has the unfortunate effect of disengag...more
Stories of abused and battered children in Africa are legion, but few cut as close to the bone as this collection by Uwem Akpan. His five tales, two of which are novella length, are told with the uninhibited, truth-filled voices of the children involved. Each one takes place in a different country but the theme is universal: the biggest challenge faced by children in Africa is staying alive.
Akpan, a Jesuit priest with an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, piles on details a...more
Akpan, a Jesuit priest with an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, piles on details a...more
Nigerian author Akpan is a master of depicting gritty scenes of chaos and fear in this collection of five not so short stories set in war-torn Africa. Akpan deals with topics such as slavery, religious conflict, genocide and poverty, and if these topics weren't powerful enough, they are ten times more so as they are told through the eyes of children. In addition, I listened to this book on audio and the readers captured the authenticity of the various African languages and dialects. These storie...more
What I learned from this book is that I need to know more about the history and political situation in Africa. Akpan has a gift for writing from the viewpoint of children who suffer due to poverty and violence. It is my fault, not his, that I didn't understand these stories better. I am somewhat familiar with the terrible violence that has occurred in Rwanda due to tribal conflict. Thus the story, "My Parent's Bedroom", was very clear to me. It was also terribly frightening.
The first story I re...more
The first story I re...more
This cover has one of the most beautiful photos - I kept seeing it in the bookshop, picking it up and dithering but ultimately putting it down again. In the end, a few people on Goodreads got me interested in it - they were talking about how it was the latest book in Oprah's book club but that they'd read the sample story and it was so depressing and they didn't want to read something that upset them.
That actually made me want to read it. I want to be confronted, to be challenged, to be emotiona...more
That actually made me want to read it. I want to be confronted, to be challenged, to be emotiona...more
I decided to read this book because of popular review. People loved it. Time loved it. Essence loved it. Entertainment Weekly loved it. Maybe I should have checked my sources--all owned by Time Inc. (duh)--but I figured that a book generating this much positive press would be worth reading.
I won't go back on this opinion--it was worth reading. It was as about worth reading as most other books I have read: nothing spectacular, but not a waste of my time, either. What seemed wasteful in Akpan's bo...more
I won't go back on this opinion--it was worth reading. It was as about worth reading as most other books I have read: nothing spectacular, but not a waste of my time, either. What seemed wasteful in Akpan's bo...more
Even as one who has spent considerable time in Africa, "in the trenches," so to speak, one who has many African friends, I cannot say that I truly understand Africans. Their different ways of thinking, their cultures, their perceptions, often leave me, a white Western woman, bewildered and exasperated. Should I spend the remainder of my life among them, I believe I would always be aware of the vast gulf of understanding that stands between us and my own ingrained and presumptive Western ideologi...more
just picked up from the library.
Read the three short-ish ones and they, particularly 'My Parent's Bedroom' have knocked me down with their power...
later: still reeling from this one. He's not the greatest writer in the world - the three short pieces are superbly done, but the longer pieces - novellas really - are too long, repetitive, relying on exposition too much. But that doesn't seem to matter, you forget the difficulties of dealing with the odd dialects, French and 'African' English because...more
Read the three short-ish ones and they, particularly 'My Parent's Bedroom' have knocked me down with their power...
later: still reeling from this one. He's not the greatest writer in the world - the three short pieces are superbly done, but the longer pieces - novellas really - are too long, repetitive, relying on exposition too much. But that doesn't seem to matter, you forget the difficulties of dealing with the odd dialects, French and 'African' English because...more
Say You’re One of Them is a heartbreaking collection of short stories (or, rather, two novellas and three short stories), each set in a different country in Africa. A champion of children, Uwem's collection shines a clear light on the harsh realities of life for many African kids.
In each of these stories, innocence collides with corruption. Set in Benin, “Fattening for Gabon” depicts an uncle who, as the guardian of two AIDS orphans, plans to sell his young charges into slavery. In “An Ex-Mas Fe...more
In each of these stories, innocence collides with corruption. Set in Benin, “Fattening for Gabon” depicts an uncle who, as the guardian of two AIDS orphans, plans to sell his young charges into slavery. In “An Ex-Mas Fe...more
Say You’re One of Them by Uwem Akpan
Tragic, frustrating, majestic, bewildering are all words I would use to describe this short story collection. I have never read so many sad tales that did not come out of Russian literature. This collection is breathtaking in so many ways that mere words do no justice. Akpan is a true artist that paints with words a world so tragically wrong that it bothers you to your core. To know that such a world exists shames us all. Yet the writing is so beautiful that...more
Tragic, frustrating, majestic, bewildering are all words I would use to describe this short story collection. I have never read so many sad tales that did not come out of Russian literature. This collection is breathtaking in so many ways that mere words do no justice. Akpan is a true artist that paints with words a world so tragically wrong that it bothers you to your core. To know that such a world exists shames us all. Yet the writing is so beautiful that...more
This isn't a work to which I can assign stars- it would be like ranking tourist visits to concentration camps- this one was more interesting, that one was more intact, the other had the best museum shop, when in fact they are all horrific and unforgettable.
To further the analogy, reading Uwem Akpan was like reading Elie Wiesel- devastating and heartbreaking, with details as vivid and palpable as yesterday. The difference is that decades of history and a Western world romance with WWII have almo...more
To further the analogy, reading Uwem Akpan was like reading Elie Wiesel- devastating and heartbreaking, with details as vivid and palpable as yesterday. The difference is that decades of history and a Western world romance with WWII have almo...more
This isn't a a book that's easy to read, but it is a book worth reading. It will take you out of your comfort zone, it will force you to address human atrocities easy to ignore, and it will open your eyes to other realities other people's fates.
These may not be 'real' stories, not facts to assign to real people, but they are based on real events. They are fictionalized immersions into a world too many people have turned a blind eye to.
I reccomend reading the stories from first to last. I would n...more
These may not be 'real' stories, not facts to assign to real people, but they are based on real events. They are fictionalized immersions into a world too many people have turned a blind eye to.
I reccomend reading the stories from first to last. I would n...more
Jan 29, 2012
Lindsay
marked it as didn-t-finish
I agree with Petra X's and Chuck's reviews. Ultimately my rating hinges on the fact that I'm an outside reader and I find some of the dialogue arrhythmic, and the renderings cold. It's true you could argue that the author uses dialect and stoic descriptions to reflect the reality and sometimes complacency of the circumstances portrayed. Perhaps it's a clever enthymeme to build our sympathy and understanding. But in a collection clearly written for an outside audience, the syntax reads too much l...more
Feb 04, 2010
Laurel
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fiction,
historical-fiction
I have always been drawn to Africa and thus to stories about Africa. As such, this book seemed right up my alley. In the end, though, it was a bit of a disappointment for me. While the stories overall were well-told, the characters seemed detached and somehow lacking in depth. For whatever reason, I just couldn't get fully absorbed. This is one of those books I'd like to revisit when I am able to read the print version. I feel like I missed something with the audio... it was too easy for me to t...more
Feb 05, 2009
Bookmarks Magazine
added it
Hailed as "a major literary debut" (San Diego Union-Tribune) and "brilliant" (USA Today), Uwem Akpan's collection Say You're One of Them fulfills the promise of his 2005 short story, "An Ex-Mas Feast," in the New Yorker. Without flinching or lecturing, Akpan shares the almost unimaginable horrors that threaten Africa's most vulnerable children. A Jesuit priest, he also evokes the love, grace, and other spiritual values that can emerge from the fight for survival. Critics universally praised Akpa
...more
A street boy spends Christmas with his family and hopes they can stay together. A brother and sister prepare for a life of childhood slavery. Two young girls, one Christian and one Muslim, are forced to abandon their budding friendship. A teenage Muslim boy is scared to reveal his identity on a bus full of vengeful Christians. A half-Hutu, half-Tutsi girl watches her family destroy itself. These are the central characters we meet in Uwem Akpan's Say You're One of Them, a 2008 collection of stori...more
Dec 08, 2012
William Hayes
added it
Why do we read books like Say You're One of Them?
The answers to this question, it seems to me, cluster about two different, but not unrelated notions.
Here is a sampling of comments printed on the jacket of the edition that I have read, arranged in those two clusters:
PRAISE for the writerly skills of the Author
PRAISE for the readerly content of the Stories
The answers to this question, it seems to me, cluster about two different, but not unrelated notions.
Here is a sampling of comments printed on the jacket of the edition that I have read, arranged in those two clusters:
PRAISE for the writerly skills of the Author
"rendered with clarity and grace"
"well-crafted" by "a writer of rare gifts"
"at any page a stunning sentence will leap out"
PRAISE for the readerly content of the Stories
"imagine the unimagin...more
I would have given this book 5 stars if the dialog had been easier to follow. There's a lot of French and other words thrown in the dialog so it was a bit hard to follow, but the narrative and actions around the dialog were clear and concise, so I was able to follow the stories well enough. Having footnotes at the bottom of pages with a translation would have helped.
These stories are NOT happy, so you cannot consider this a 'light' read, and as for enjoyable... well... I didn't enjoy it in the s...more
These stories are NOT happy, so you cannot consider this a 'light' read, and as for enjoyable... well... I didn't enjoy it in the s...more
It took me a while to find my next round-the-world book. I started two other books and 150 pages in decided that it was just a waste of more time to finish them.
And then I found this book
Uwem Akpan is a Nigerian Jesuit priest, and an author shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African writing, and longlisted for The Guardian First Book Award. And this book was a New York Times bestseller.
Not a combination that happens often I wouldn’t think.
This book is actually a series of five stories, unrelat...more
And then I found this book
Uwem Akpan is a Nigerian Jesuit priest, and an author shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African writing, and longlisted for The Guardian First Book Award. And this book was a New York Times bestseller.
Not a combination that happens often I wouldn’t think.
This book is actually a series of five stories, unrelat...more
This is a remarkable collection of stories--some long enough to be a short novel, some about what we usually find with most short stories. But all of these are rich and lively, albeit painfully beautiful, in their extraordinary breath and scope. Each are microcosms into a complex culture where life on the edge is just business as usual for these Africans. All the more to take note and open one's heart--especially to these children growing up grateful for an education; that somehow, some way they...more
The author, a native of Africa and Jesuit priest, wrote this book of short stories to give a voice to the children of Africa and let the world know the atrocities they must endure, and often don't survive. The title is what children are told to say when angry mobs threaten to kill them for being of a different religion or tribe. The differences are frequently within families, leading brothers to murder brothers and husbands to kill wives. The relentless poverty is also a threat. People sniff glu...more
Uwem Akpan is a man acquainted with grief. He is a Jesuit priest from Nigeria, and these stories, all beautifully written from the point of view of children, are intended to help people see that "the situation of Africa is very urgent."
That is putting it mildly. It took me months to finish this book; for long stretches of time I became reluctant to pick it up again. The violence in the stories is as or more brutal than any I've read. But it is very far from the gratuitous pap that we have fed to...more
That is putting it mildly. It took me months to finish this book; for long stretches of time I became reluctant to pick it up again. The violence in the stories is as or more brutal than any I've read. But it is very far from the gratuitous pap that we have fed to...more
Here I go again. Another book I want to turn away from but just can't. I bought the book in a hospital bookstore, because it looked interesting and because it had several stories in it so it would be a good "waiting room" book.
I managed to finish the first story, An Exmas feast, before I was called in for my medical appointment. This story literally turned my stomach. By the time I was called in to my appointment I was so relieved that cancer was my biggest problem. I should recommend this book...more
I managed to finish the first story, An Exmas feast, before I was called in for my medical appointment. This story literally turned my stomach. By the time I was called in to my appointment I was so relieved that cancer was my biggest problem. I should recommend this book...more
Although this edition only contains three (viz Say You're One of Them, An Ex-Mas Feast, and My Parents' Bedroom) of the five stories from the book of the same title, it is enough to give those who are faint of heart the general gist of Akpan's subject matter and style. "Say You're One of Them" is chillingly intense. It's basically one of those living nightmare scenarios that makes me realize two things
1. I'm glad I don't live there.
and
2. I don't really have any problems. I have minor difficulti...more
1. I'm glad I don't live there.
and
2. I don't really have any problems. I have minor difficulti...more
Despite the Oprah Book Club 2009 sticker, I was recommended to read this book. The five stories are all told from the point of view of children in different parts of Africa. Readrer beware - all of these stories deal with child-sex trade, the Rwanda massacre and the exploitation of resources that affect peoples ways of living. The author is a Jesuit priest who has a wonderful way with words while writing about such provocative subjects. He does not pick any religion as being better than the othe...more
A really powerful collection of short stories about contemporary horrors in Africa seen from the perspective of children. The first story: An Ex-mas feast was about street children and the older sibling’s choice to become a full-time prostitute. The second story Fatting for Gabon was the most heart-wrenching for me as it was about two children and their uncle’s choice (then reversal) to sell them into slavery. The third What Language is That was about cultural differences a young girl’s choice t...more
I usually read literary short stories with an attitude of detached admiration - of the narrative technique, of the shaping of the story arc, that kind of thing. Very rarely do I feel the kind of tension I did reading these -- I think it's the closest I've come to a genuine experience of Aristotle's catharsis involving pity and fear. In 'Fattening for Gabon' I was riveted, anticipating not just the actual taking of the children, but the realization that the adoptive godparents of whom they were s...more
Okay, I was really excited about this book. I started reading this book, but about half way through it I had to put it down for a while. I love his writing style. This book is filled with beautiful prose, and vivid descriptions. It is very well-written. The only thing that is making this book difficult for me to read is the heavy use of dialect and foreign language. On one hand, it is necessary, as the short stories in this book take place in various countries of Africa; each with it's own uniqu...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great African Reads: January: Short Story | "Say You're One of Them" | 28 | 52 | Jan 28, 2013 08:50am | |
| Goodreads Librari...: ISBN 9780316086363 | 2 | 18 | Oct 13, 2012 08:43pm |
Uwem Akpan was born in Ikot Akpan Eda in southern Nigeria. After studying philosophy and English at Creighton and Gonzaga universities, he studied theology for three years at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. He was ordained as a Jesuit priest in 2003 and received his MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan in 2006. "My Parents' Bedroom," a story from his short story colle...more
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Jan 30, 2012 02:11am
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