A Spell of Good Things

Author: Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

Publisher: Canongate Books Ltd

Year of publication: 2023

How I discovered the book

I saw it on a library front page. And voilà, I reserved it.

Background

In “A Spell of Good Things”, Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀ tells a fascinating story where politics, love, destiny meet. The story is set in a small town. Through a twist of fate, the paths of a poor sixteen year old and a wealthy medical doctor meet.

Ayọ̀bámi warmly captured Nigerian slangs, innuendos, and way of life. She took me down a steep memory lane.

I smiled as I read and remembered places, old music, and commonly used phrases.

I loved the accents on the Nigerian names and traditional words. The accents are called àmì ohùn in Yorùbá language. More on this in the postscript (P.S.)

I digress. Now back to the book.

It was painful to read social issues we wish were unheard of in Nigeria – political thuggery, medical negligence, the stark divide between the rich and the poor, domestic violence, and the tragic consequences of getting married at all costs.

This book ended with an unexpected twist that left my heart racing.

At some point, I couldn’t bear the suspense. I fled to Google to find out what happened.

Spoiler sections

I wondered if Iya Eniola was dyslexic and not dumb. She struggled to read with letters dancing before her eyes. 

I wondered if Baba Eniola was depressed, not lazy, with no will to find a way out of his predicament.

Since they were the have-nots, they didn’t get a diagnosis.

Information gives perspective.

In real life, I wonder if how many people have been unfairly dismissed due to undiagnosed ailments. They are misunderstood because nobody knows they have a medical issue. Let’s support those with problems that we don’t understand.

On another note, why exactly are children flogged when their parents do not pay their school fees? It is grossly unfair.

Moving away from that, many African ladies will relate to this excerpt:

“When she’d turned twenty-three and was, thanks to various university strikes, still in her third year of medical school, her mother had gone from telling her to face her books and not follow any foolish boys to being interested in every detail of her romantic life.” 

– Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

African mothers, why this sudden switch?

My favourite character is Busola. She is bold and outspoken. She defended her brother even when she benefited from her parent’s choice to pay her school fees instead of her brother’s. Alas, with her “ajankolokolo” hair, she met ill luck. 

One more amazing quality I love about “A Spell of Good Things”

Ayọ̀bámi gave us a window to the characters’ thought processes. She explained why they made certain decisions. This made the story even more interesting as we could see how their emotions steered their actions.

You may wonder why Wura stayed for that long in her abuse-ridden relationship, but you will at least understand her thought process – the concerns for her family, and the narcissistic behaviour of Kunle. He was so loving after the beating.

We waited long enough for Wuraola’s break-up text. And when it did arrive, it was so abrupt. No mincing words.

On another note, I read these phrases differently:

When Holy Michael said, “His brain cells are complete”, I read it as Orí e pé in Yoruba.

And when they were “sorting beans”, I read it as “picking beans”.

Who should read this book?

All politicians and electorates and anyone who enjoys a good read and can survive an author’s heartbreak. 

Check it out on Amazon.

P.S. 1: The accents in Yorùbá are pronounced do-re-mi as follows: do (represented by ‘\’ mark), re (represented by no marks) and mi for (represented by ‘\’mark). Now using this guidance, pronounce Ayọ̀bámi (re-do-mi-re).

P.S. 2: There was a nostalgic reminder of Ovation, Tell, Styl plus, Alaroye, Nights of a thousand laughs (a comedy show), the days when we chose clothes style from magazines (we now choose from Pinterest and Instagram).

P.S. 3: It seems like first-born children act as assistant parents and second-born and successive are bold and opinionated. What do you think? Have you noticed it?

Have you read “A Spell of Good Things”. What did you like about it? Don’t forget to leave a comment.