Côte d'Ivoire - Love-across-a-Hundred-Lives

Book 38: Love-across-a-Hundred-Lives - Werewere Liking

"In 'Love-across-a-Hundred-Lives," the narrator tells the story of Lem, her brother, who is preparing to hang himself when his grandmother Madjo appears. He secretly expects her to dissuade him from suicide, but instead she encourages him, urging him to make his final action a success that will make up for all his earlier failures. As he continues to knot the rope that will be his noose, Madjo tells Lem stories of their ancestors, of legendary and historical African figures; interwoven are the voices of Lem himself, of the narrator, and of her sister Go. When Lem is finally ready to conclude his act, he no longer wants to die. Madjo has accomplished her mission to make Lem a man in the most complete and noble sense of the word, whole and strong enough not only to survive but to give of himself to others." 

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The description pretty much says it all. I found the stories of legendary and historical African figures to be quite interesting and engaging, but wasn't drawn into the story of the narrator and Lem. In fact, I found that strand rather confusing. I ended up skipping over their parts and reading the sections where Madjo spoke to him. Overall, not really my favorite book, but certainly worth it for the African legends.