Part of what defined the Ake Book and Arts Festival that ended last week, in Abeokuta, Ogun State was the special attention the organisers paid to some salient areas of literary narratives that do not often receive deserving attention. That aspect is the travel writing or travelogue by African writers. Most often it is the experience from travels that inform some of the stories writers put together. But when it comes to discussing other aspects of the literary genre or sources of the stories writers pierce together for their works, no one tends to focus on travelogue or even the people behind the stories.
Over time, some outstanding literary masterpieces have emerged from stories people gathered from their travelling experiences. But then how does the literary scene treat these stories? Do people actually sit down to reminisce on these and how they can be expanded for the sake of literature?
In the session at the festival titled book chat, two authors whose latest works concentrated more on travel writings were made to share their experiences with others. The authors were Professor Okey Ndibe of Nigeria and Alain Mabanckou of Congo Brazzaville. The theme of the discussion was aptly captioned travel writing by African writers. While Ndibe’s latest narrative is titled Never look an American in the Eye, Mabanckou’s is Lights pointe-Noire. Each book talks about the clash of cultures that necessitated or provided the back-grounding for the book.
Mabanckou who left his native land of Congo at a very early age, told of how his return to his country many years after, triggered the story. He said, “I am a Congolese. It is time to use our works in Africa and all over the world to unite the world. In this profession and beyond, we are divided especially in Anglophone. People like us who are not versed in the English language are scared to come here to speak in the English language. This is why we prefer to speak in Belgian or French and so on… You see, I was 23 years when I left home. Then my mum died. But before that, she told me not to return home. ‘They fight everywhere now and if you return, they will kill you,’ she had warned me”.
So having that warning burning in his heart, Mabanckou stayed away, being the only child. Gradually, the warning, his mother’s death, his experiences in Belgium, the confusion in the Congo and so on, began to agitate his mind. “This is why it is good for me to write about my childhood; my mother, my father and the people who in one way or the other influenced my being. These are people who gave meaning to my life. So Lights Pointe-Noire, has to be translated for people to see what I met back home when I eventually returned home.
“For me,” Mabanckou continued, “my words are not merely written, but spoken. It is so too in Congo where literature is not just written but spoken as well. When I see people around me, what they do, what they eat and wear, they inspire what I write. My people are my hope for writing. This was why when I got home the story began to flow. For me, a writer has to keep writing: keep pouring out the pain, one day you will get to the pinnacle and the world will recognise your worth,” he submitted.
As for Ndibe whose experience in the United States of America informed his own travel narrative, Never Look an American in the Eye, it is a very sensitive memoire. Before he left Nigeria for the US, an uncle of his had warned him Never to Look an American in the Eye. It was a warning that stuck with him like a stench. He said, “Yes, it is the story of an important incident that happened to me in the US. A few days after I arrived the US, I was arrested by the police who claimed that I was involved in an armed robbery case, or that the description of one of the people involved in it, fitted my own.
“Before this, I had looked the police in the eye at a nearby bus stop. Shortly after that, I was tapped on the shoulder from behind by a police officer who said he needed my attention. Initially, I thought it was because I had earlier on looked a police officer in the eye. But then, it was bigger than that as I was to learn later. This was what triggered this narrative that today people ask me – is this your memoire? Before this work came out, my mother in-law used to tell me – oh, Okey all your works are sad and bleak. Can’t you write a book that has soothing story line? So this narrative was in my mind for a long time. I didn’t want to hurry it so that readers would see how happily it ended.”
Ndibe who lectures in the US and had worked with The Guardian Newspapers before leaving Nigeria, said, “when I began to write it, it took me eleven months to complete. My leaving Nigeria in 1988 was on the invitation of Professor Chinua Achebe who wanted me to edit his magazine on Africans in Diaspora. The magazine had series of stories on African cultures. Not only on Africa, it was a global magazine concentrating on the treatment, preservation and development of African issues. I was chosen because Achebe and I had an interesting relationship,” he said.
Over time, the relationship had blossomed into trust on both sides. “Through Achebe, I encountered great writers like Professor Ngugi whose love for simple English have influenced me a great deal. However, my immediate influence came from Achebe. His love for words, for simple expressions, influenced me and helped me to navigate the world of literature. Achebe had a great economy of words. He is the ultimate teacher,” he said.
As the days progressed, Ndibe discovered that events in his life, his mingling with other cultures could indeed become sources of literary narratives for him. Today he has so many literary works to his credit most of which emanated from his encounters with people across cultures and so on. Now, a professor of Literature, Ndibe believes that literature in Africa can never die because the likes of Achebe have established a strong literary clan in the continent. “Even though Achebe died, but he lives. He has left a good road to travel, for us to continue to recreate and continue to tell our stories”.
