In Dependence
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Review
'It is a mark of Manyika's care for her characters that life and love so engagingly result in a hopeful union.' --Akin Adesokan, author of Roots in the Sky
'Sarah Ladipo Manyika's novel has the subtle power of a well woven work, nothing is out of place... it is full of surprises.' --Obi Nwankanam, Vanguard
'A big and elegantly told story of lost love.' --Brian Chikwava, Author of Harare North
'Sarah Ladipo Manyika's novel has the subtle power of a well woven work, nothing is out of place... it is full of surprises.' --Obi Nwankanam, Vanguard
'A big and elegantly told story of lost love.' --Brian Chikwava, Author of Harare North
Product Description
It is the early-sixties when a young Tayo Ajayi sails to England from Nigeria to take up a scholarship at Oxford University. In this city of dreaming spires, he finds himself among a generation high on visions of a new and better world. The whole world seems ablaze with change: independence at home, the Civil Rights movement and the first tremors of cultural and sexual revolutions. It is then that Tayo meets Vanessa Richardson, the beautiful daughter of an ex-colonial officer. "In Dependence" is Tayo and Vanessa's story of a brave but bittersweet love affair. It is the story of two people struggling to find themselves and each other - a story of passion and idealism, courage and betrayal, and the universal desire to fall, madly, deeply, in love.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I found this book a couple of days ago - on a flight from London to Sao Paulo. Someone had left it in the rack behind the seat in front of me.
It was just what I needed. I work in the banking sector and the current financial crisis has made the people I work with smaller and meaner than they normally are (and they are not the prettiest of characters at the best of times).
I needed something to remind me of the breadth of the world that I live in. Something to make me laugh. And something to lift my spirit and remind me of the role that serendipity can play in our lives (if we just let it).
There are so many books where you get the feeling that the author doesn't really like his or her characters. The opposite is true of this book. The protagonists - with all their flaws and weaknesses - are tenderly and lovingly depicted.
It is so easy to fall in love with the characters in this book (and the author lets you do so). And, although it is not a thriller, the narrative moves you forward at just the right pace. Whether in Lagos or Oxford, Dakar or San Francisco, this deceptively simple tale of "boy meets girl" kept me spell bound for much of my journey. The journey of Tayo and Vanessa spans four decades. My transatlantic journey took just 11 hours. But as I got off the plane I felt rejuvenated and a couple of hours later I did something I should have done ages ago - I called Luisa.
It was just what I needed. I work in the banking sector and the current financial crisis has made the people I work with smaller and meaner than they normally are (and they are not the prettiest of characters at the best of times).
I needed something to remind me of the breadth of the world that I live in. Something to make me laugh. And something to lift my spirit and remind me of the role that serendipity can play in our lives (if we just let it).
There are so many books where you get the feeling that the author doesn't really like his or her characters. The opposite is true of this book. The protagonists - with all their flaws and weaknesses - are tenderly and lovingly depicted.
It is so easy to fall in love with the characters in this book (and the author lets you do so). And, although it is not a thriller, the narrative moves you forward at just the right pace. Whether in Lagos or Oxford, Dakar or San Francisco, this deceptively simple tale of "boy meets girl" kept me spell bound for much of my journey. The journey of Tayo and Vanessa spans four decades. My transatlantic journey took just 11 hours. But as I got off the plane I felt rejuvenated and a couple of hours later I did something I should have done ages ago - I called Luisa.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A truly emotional journey. Once I started reading "In Dependence" I simply couldn't stop and now I wish I'd read it more slowly.
The author weaves an intricate fabric with characters that come alive, fact and fiction, drama, history, religion, politics and love. The naivety of youth and idealism is starkly contrasted with the harsh realities of life. The complexities of race, colour and cross cultural relationships are boldly but sensitively explored.
In Dependence evokes nostalgic memories of yester years, sober thoughts of the present and a projection of the inevitable old age years. It leaves you with a bittersweet taste and reminds you that love and relationships should be treasured.
The author weaves an intricate fabric with characters that come alive, fact and fiction, drama, history, religion, politics and love. The naivety of youth and idealism is starkly contrasted with the harsh realities of life. The complexities of race, colour and cross cultural relationships are boldly but sensitively explored.
In Dependence evokes nostalgic memories of yester years, sober thoughts of the present and a projection of the inevitable old age years. It leaves you with a bittersweet taste and reminds you that love and relationships should be treasured.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I pre-ordered this book on a whim and it arrived two days ago. I read it in two days in spite of my work commitments. I've never done an Amazon review before but as a Nigerian, I feel compelled to do a review for this book. Here is a book that successfully melds the personal and political in a way none of the great Nigerian authors of old did in their creative outputs. The dilemma now is to write this review without ruining the story for new readers.
The book is about regret and partial redemption in the tradition of Khaled Hosseini's "The Kite Runner". The political turns of a country directly affect the fate of Tayo Ajayi, the novel's protagonist. Unlike the "The Kite Runner" protagonist, Tayo refuses to seek exile as a matter of principle. But there are costs for this stubbornness and one must question where motivation from principles end and those from ego begin. This is a subtle Greek tragedy. If the purpose of life is to successfully fulfil one's core quests while also struggling to retain/increase spiritual integrity (comedy) then failure to fulfil the quest - in both the personal and public realm, the romantic and political spheres - makes for tragedy. It's a bitter lesson that Tayo learns - that abandoning personal happiness is no guarantee of success in effecting change in the political realm. One might ponder whether the rejection of personal happiness is a form of cowardice. Tayo does at least try to fulfil one of his quests and is all the more valiant a character for trying where others just pursue selfish ends or simply sleep walk through life. I could dip into my literary background and go on to draw comparisons with the travails and twisted fates of Arthurian knights and Greek heroes, but that would lose the average reader so I resist the temptation.
I will simply say that this book displays many layers; it has hidden depths. As a very mediocre art student many years ago I remember my life drawing tutor telling me to simply follow the curves of the human form with my eyes. I was to surrender the motion of my hand to the flow dictated by my eye, not my head. I also remember my still life tutor telling me the importance of negative space. Considering what isn't there (empty spaces) is just as important as taking in what is there while drawing. And for both forms of drawing the understanding of light and shade complete the work. Alas my talent was pedestrian and my artistic outputs dreadful. Thankfully Sarah Ladipo Manyika is a dexterous literary artificer with an eye for flow and negative space. She is a writer who crafts a succinct yet epic tale in her skilful manipulation of pace/flow. She is a writer who crafts a succinct yet epic tale in her renderings through that which is told/shown and untold/unshown. There are no redundant repetitions or laborious character build ups. Her economical storytelling style is very much reminiscent of Chinua Achebe's. Dialogue crackles and the author's revelatory style speaks volumes with a single sentence, a silent pause.
Are you interested in genuine and nuanced portrayals of ordinary Nigerians doing extraordinary things? Like me, are you tired of the all too often two dimensional depictions of "African lives"? Then blow away the dusty cobwebs of the usual literary fare. BUY THIS BOOK.
The book is about regret and partial redemption in the tradition of Khaled Hosseini's "The Kite Runner". The political turns of a country directly affect the fate of Tayo Ajayi, the novel's protagonist. Unlike the "The Kite Runner" protagonist, Tayo refuses to seek exile as a matter of principle. But there are costs for this stubbornness and one must question where motivation from principles end and those from ego begin. This is a subtle Greek tragedy. If the purpose of life is to successfully fulfil one's core quests while also struggling to retain/increase spiritual integrity (comedy) then failure to fulfil the quest - in both the personal and public realm, the romantic and political spheres - makes for tragedy. It's a bitter lesson that Tayo learns - that abandoning personal happiness is no guarantee of success in effecting change in the political realm. One might ponder whether the rejection of personal happiness is a form of cowardice. Tayo does at least try to fulfil one of his quests and is all the more valiant a character for trying where others just pursue selfish ends or simply sleep walk through life. I could dip into my literary background and go on to draw comparisons with the travails and twisted fates of Arthurian knights and Greek heroes, but that would lose the average reader so I resist the temptation.
I will simply say that this book displays many layers; it has hidden depths. As a very mediocre art student many years ago I remember my life drawing tutor telling me to simply follow the curves of the human form with my eyes. I was to surrender the motion of my hand to the flow dictated by my eye, not my head. I also remember my still life tutor telling me the importance of negative space. Considering what isn't there (empty spaces) is just as important as taking in what is there while drawing. And for both forms of drawing the understanding of light and shade complete the work. Alas my talent was pedestrian and my artistic outputs dreadful. Thankfully Sarah Ladipo Manyika is a dexterous literary artificer with an eye for flow and negative space. She is a writer who crafts a succinct yet epic tale in her skilful manipulation of pace/flow. She is a writer who crafts a succinct yet epic tale in her renderings through that which is told/shown and untold/unshown. There are no redundant repetitions or laborious character build ups. Her economical storytelling style is very much reminiscent of Chinua Achebe's. Dialogue crackles and the author's revelatory style speaks volumes with a single sentence, a silent pause.
Are you interested in genuine and nuanced portrayals of ordinary Nigerians doing extraordinary things? Like me, are you tired of the all too often two dimensional depictions of "African lives"? Then blow away the dusty cobwebs of the usual literary fare. BUY THIS BOOK.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Highly recommended
This book has a great storyline. It's a simple one of love, betrayal and more love but the complexity of the characters and the description of the two very different cultures... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Nana Koranteng
Quality storyline
Anyone who has grown up or lived in and around both Western and West African cultures will read and completely empathise with this book. Read more
Published 13 months ago by afolabi sonaike
Great tale of love and regret
Sarah Ladipo Manyika's concern is with character, not with exoticism. There are no colourful backdrops here for Westerners to gorge on - they have been replaced by believable... Read more
Published on 11 Oct 2009 by Andrew Blackman
Thought provoking look at love across cultures
This story is certainly a short one - having read it in just a day! However it is beautifully written and the characters are portrayed in such an honest and raw way that they... Read more
Published on 6 April 2009 by Jala sufian
Must read love story!
In Dependence is a must read love story! It is a gripping tale of Tayo Ajayi and his journey from Nigeria to Oxford University and beyond. I highly recommend this book.
Published on 29 Dec 2008 by Sharon
A touching love story and more
In Dependence is a very touching love story. I found the slice-of-life details especially fascinating: the foods, phrases, customs and political movements in Nigeria; the academic... Read more
Published on 17 Nov 2008 by Marti Paschal
A wonderful and refreshing read
I had the pleasure of meeting the author, Sarah Manyika, at a talk she gave in a small library near San Francisco and by chance I won a raffle and received a free copy of In... Read more
Published on 12 Nov 2008 by Ogechi Ikediobi
Heart warming, uplifting - a marvellous read.
This is one of those books that you just wish wouldn't end. I didn't want to say goodbye to the characters. Read more
Published on 9 Nov 2008 by Sham
A fantastic book by a very gifted writer!
I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down.
This book needs to come to the US! It is so sensitively informative about so many issues... Read more
This book needs to come to the US! It is so sensitively informative about so many issues... Read more
Published on 3 Nov 2008 by Lynn Herring
In Dependence
A great book that touchingly explores a very human condition - looking back and wondering what could have been and what shouldn't. Read more
Published on 30 Oct 2008 by Brian Chikwava
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