I had read only one Akwaeke Emezi book before You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty, which was The Death of Vivek Oji. What struck me while reading this book, however, was how many of the things that made The Death of Vivek Oji uncomfortable for me also appear, in one form or another, here. Emezi has a particular interest in exploring ideas such as morality, sexuality, love and acceptable behaviours in ways many Nigerians, and perhaps in extension Africans, would frown against. With disturbing directness, both The Death of Vivek Oji and You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty explores homosexuality (although the latter far subtly), a subject that many Nigerians consider sinful, disgusting, and in extreme cases, are of the opinion that homosexuals should be put to death simply because of their sexual preferences. The latter part is one reason I think Emezi’s books are doing something important; they are establishing the understanding that homosexuals are people too, although ...
The second novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite, Cursed Daughters , foreshadows its own plot through its title, giving readers a clear expectation of the book’s central theme. The story revolves around the curse of a household—the Falodun family—a curse meant to plague only the daughters. “ Your daughters will pursue men, and lose their hold on them. Your descendants will suffer for man’s sake.” This is the curse that haunts the family, one the culprit initially laughed off, as anyone would, but which soon proves to be no laughing matter. The novel takes us through generations of Falodun women and the various ways they lost or suffered because of men. At the top of this lineage is Feranmi Falodun , the great-grandmother and originator of the curse, who slept with another woman’s husband and brought damnation upon her descendants. Next is Bunmi Falodun, Mo’s mother, whose husband took another wife and eventually sent her and her children packing. Bunmi would go on to spend years, ti...