Swallow by Seffi Atta

Sefi Atta has a

book out and these are some of what people had to say about it.

"In this unique novel, outstanding new literary talent Sefi Atta takes great strides in style and form, to bring wit and passion to the heartbreaking story of Tolani and Rose, two young women struggling, not always successfully to make an honest living in contemporary Nigeria...Atta tells in an eminently readable voice the irreconcilable nature of the two friends' fates."
Tsitsi Dangarembga, author of Nervous Conditions

"Tender, fierce, vivid and memorable -- a bold, distinctive novel from a writer who doesn't compromise her integrity."
Leila Aboulela,author of Minaret

"Sefi's Swallow is a triumph of the terse. It throbs with laconic intelligence and the veritable Sefi Atta denouement."
Tade Ipadeola, author of A Time of Signs

It is the mid 1980s in Lagos and the government's War Against Indiscipline and austerity measures are fully in operation. Tolani Ajao is a secretary working at Federal Community Bank. A succession of unfortunate events lead Tolani's roommate and colleague, Rose, to persuade her to consider drug trafficking as an alternative means of making a living. Tolani's subsequent struggle with temptation forces her to reconsider her morality and that of her mother Arike's, as she embarks on a turbulent journey of self-discovery.

smilee · Jul 3, 2008 , 07:28 PM

Thank you Anike. I'll check it out. I love supporting my own!

Anike · Jul 4, 2008 , 02:00 AM

You're welcome Smilee. The mail lady brought my copy but I missed it/her so I have to wait till Saturday to go pick it up from my local post office. I hope I like it.

mulan · Jul 4, 2008 , 11:50 AM

I don't think I like the storyline from the blurb but probably like in Everything good will come, the joy of the reading will be in the stories behind the stories and the style of her prose. I will see if I can get a copy...

smilee · Jul 4, 2008 , 05:40 PM

Anike where did you get yours from? Amazon & barnes dont have it. Hook a sister up girl!

smartomoge · Jul 4, 2008 , 05:45 PM

Everything good will come had to grow on me sha. I was not captivated from the get go, but it grew, and the ending surprised me. It was good. I will try to get my hands on this one too.

Anike · Jul 5, 2008 , 06:05 AM

Originally Posted by smilee

Anike where did you get yours from? Amazon & barnes dont have it. Hook a sister up girl!

I got the only copy on Amazon. I don't understand what the deal is with the book.
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I just tried the link again (see my first post here) and it gave me the option of adding the book to my cart.

osa · Jul 9, 2008 , 08:24 PM

Mulan, I quite agree with you on your opinion of ''everything good will come''. I enjoyed reading it though I couldnt quite relate the title with the story, probably because I had other expectations. Despite that, I really enjoyed reading it and will definitely get myself a copy of this new one.

Anike · Aug 11, 2008 , 02:42 PM

Another interesting read by Sefi Atta. It's a rather sad book though. A story of poverty, corruption, hopelessness, societal expectations, meeting up with these expectations but never quite measuring up... You visualize what Rose (Swallow's Silifat-to whom something good hardly ever came) was going through, and where she came from and you sympathize with her. It's the story of Nigerians across all ages and both genders continually striving to better their lots via honest means but with the odds always stacked against them. And then there are the corrupt people, the Salakos, who set the stumbling blocks in the honest people's paths. Young people who have resigned to getting by by any means possible. And then there are the Tolanis (the Enitan of Swallow), who realize that they can not beat them but refuse to join them.

So nice it took me, give or take, a month to read.

MsWoman · Aug 11, 2008 , 05:42 PM

Mine came what 2 weeks ago? I haven't started on it yet, becos I am just now finishing The Mrs Club and still have one other West African writer to read b4 I start Swallow.

Anike · Aug 11, 2008 , 06:03 PM

Originally Posted by MsWoman

...I am just now finishing The Mrs Club...

You wan share? You laik or you no laik am?

MsWoman · Aug 12, 2008 , 01:21 AM

@Anike:

I still have a few more pages to go, but I must say so far, I am loving it! When I first picked up the book na so the thing come fear me oh! I could have sworn she was talking about my posse! Goes to show how real the events and stories are!

Ph3y · Aug 12, 2008 , 09:44 PM

I have read everything good will come but didn't like the ending...i'l try and get this new book though cos i am a book freak besides i have to support a sista.

MrsChocT · Aug 19, 2008 , 11:09 AM

Hope you people know of half.com You can get your books so cheap, it'll even shock you.