Say You're One of Them

Uwem Akpan
Little, Brown and Company (2008)
ISBN 9780316113786
Reviewed by Kam Aures for RebeccasReads (6/08)

“Say You’re One of Them” is a collection of short stories written by Uwem Akpan, a Jesuit priest born in Nigeria.  His inspiration to write comes from “the people who sit around my village church to share palm wine after Sunday mass, by the Bible, and by the humor and endurance of the poor.” All proceeds from this book will be going to his religious order, the Jesuits. 

Each of the five stories in the book envisions what life is like for children in different African nations.  For example, in the first short story in the book, “An Ex-Mas Feast”, the tale is told of an eight-year-old Kenyan boy named Jigana, and the lengths his family must go to in order to survive.  When there is no food, Jigana’s mother has the children sniff glue as this act suppresses the children’s appetites until their next meal.  Most of the money that the family has is earned by his twelve-year old sister Maisha who works the streets as a prostitute.  It is heartbreaking to see what these children endure in order to keep their family’s heads above water. 

Some of the language used throughout the book is a little difficult to understand and there were many instances in which I had to reread passages in order to understand what was being said.  Here is an example of Akpan’s writing style taken from the first story: “We shall pay school fees next year.  No more randa-meandering around.  No more chomaring your brain with glue, boy.  You are going back to school!  Did the rain beat you and Baby?” (p.8)  There are quite a few native non–English words and sentences peppered throughout the novel that you can usually decipher based on the context but, in my opinion, somewhat hinder the natural flow of the book. 
 
Although the book is a work of fiction, the stories really make you think and feel for the children of these African countries, as some of these stories are all too close to home for the impoverished among them.  The writing is powerful and will make you think about things in a whole new way.  Akpan is a truly talented writer, and I think that his work is a very important one and will be instrumental in opening the eyes of the world to the plight of these people.