[5OL]⇒ PDF Season of Crimson Blossoms Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 9781911115007 Books

Season of Crimson Blossoms Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 9781911115007 Books

Download As PDF : Season of Crimson Blossoms Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 9781911115007 Books

Season of Crimson Blossoms Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 9781911115007 Books

I appreciated reading a book filled with Hausa culture and language-- something that im not use to. The story was intriguing. I liked the unique story that the main character had. She was both a heroine and villain at the same time. Although a good read, I felt it took a little while for the plot to develop. Nonetheless I'd still recommend it.


Tags : Season of Crimson Blossoms [Abubakar Adam Ibrahim] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <div> A rich and vibrant novel with shades of brutality, romance and the pressures of a close knit community. —Leila Aboulela,Abubakar Adam Ibrahim,Season of Crimson Blossoms,Cassava Republic Press,1911115006,Literary,Political,Religious,Man-woman relationships,Muslims,Nigeria - Social conditions,Nigeria;Social conditions;Fiction.,FICTION Family Life General,FICTION Literary,FICTION Political,FICTION Religious,Fiction,Fiction-Literary,FictionFamily Life - General,FictionReligious - General,GENERAL,General Adult,Great BritainBritish Isles

Season of Crimson Blossoms Abubakar Adam Ibrahim 9781911115007 Books Reviews

Ibrahim’s Season of Crimson Blossoms is unapologetically non-western and shines as an authentic work of postcolonial Nigerian fiction. As I was reading it, I often thought to myself how different in tone and language it was from almost anything else I’ve read, even compared to other Nigerian writers.
This novel proved to be a refreshing and needed addition to my reading history because it’s a story centered around Nigerian Muslims. About half of the Nigerian population is Muslim, so I was a bit surprised that I hadn’t read any work that told the stories of such an important group of people. Season of Crimson Blossoms does a brilliant job telling a story that is both beautifully written and powerfully deconstructs stereotypes held by outsiders.

The language truly is one of my favorite aspects of this novel. Before I knew where the story was taking me, I was captivated by the language. The story opens thus "Hajiya Binta Zubairu was finally born at fifty-five when a dark-lipped rogue with short, spiky hair, like a field of minuscule anthills, scaled her fence and landed, boots and all, in the puddle that was her heart."

Binta and Reza, the “rogue,” are the stars of the novel. Binta has been a widow for 10 years and has only been with one man all her life. Reza is a gang leader and weed dealer, certainly not the most reputable of characters. They live in northern Nigeria, which is ultra conservative and makes their illicit affair all the more dangerous and scandalous. They both have deeply troubled pasts and meet entirely by chance, after which their lives change irrevocably.

Initially, their affair made me uncomfortable, not because of the age difference, but because Reza reminds Binta of her dead son, whom she was not allowed to show any affection for due to her culture’s tradition, and Binta reminded Reza of his mother who abandoned him as a boy. They remind each other of people in their lives who were absent and thus had their natural feelings and affections suppressed. However, once I got over my initial knee-jerk discomfort at the implications of their relationship, I was able to enjoy the development of that relationship and the inevitable climax of their discovery.

Another aspect of the novel I enjoyed was how unconcerned Ibrahim was with the western gaze. It makes a lot of sense because Season of Crimson Blossoms was initially written for and published in Nigeria in 2015 and was only recently published by Cassava Republic Press for European and western audiences. The entire novel reads in an authentic voice that would have been lost or distorted if written from a different lens. This voice is most apparent in the language Ibrahim uses, because there are several phrases and sentences scattered throughout the novel written in the characters’ native Hausa, sometimes several in every page. As a person who doesn’t speak Hausa and is unfamiliar with all aspects of Islam, I do admit that the foreign expressions slowed my reading quite a bit at times. But this is not a fault of the story, it is a failing on my part.

I appreciate the fact that a Nigerian Muslim would have a much easier time reading through the story because much of it would be intimately familiar to their experience. When I read a novel that uses Spanish phrases and sentences heavily, I feel a stronger connection to it and appreciate it more than non-Spanish speakers would. It’s precisely because I’m bilingual and understand that the world’s stories don’t have to cater to my western sensibilities, that I am able to enjoy a story such as Season of Crimson Blossoms.

Some readers may be turned off by how non-western the story and overall tone of this novel is. But they would be doing themselves a disservice by rejecting a story simply because it is foreign to their experience. I encourage westerners specifically to shift away from ethnocentrism because viewing the world through a familiar lens may hinder personal growth. We should all strive to expand our cognitive and intellectual boundaries beyond our areas of comfort. As readers, one easy way to do this is to pick up a book such as Season of Crimson Blossoms and read it with open minds and perhaps an open Google search. If you put in the effort, you will more than likely be rewarded with personal or intellectual enrichment.
Unpacking expectations and showing a glimpse of modern-day, post-colonial Nigeria conservative and vibrant with influences from Christianity and Islam, the societal censure and expectations are not unlike those in small town America of the 1950’s, without the diversity that is. Ibrihim’s writing style is lyrical and occasionally effluent, full of adjectives and descriptions that bring visual imagery and take you to that “we’re not in Kansas anymore” place as you read.

Introducing the widowed Binta now 55 she’s lived her life always coloring in the lines, until the unthinkable happens, her first son dies, and in her grief she is wondering just why she was so worried about everyone else when her own grief is so keen. Reza is a thug, a gang member and deals weed. At 26, he’s had a life full of struggle after being abandoned by his mother. But, old enough to be his grandmother, Binta, is someone he can’t walk away from. Even though, his mother would have been young enough to be Binta’s child. But these two fit well together, despite their differences, and their secret romance set amidst the tapestry of the large extended family, political unrest, religious violence and general danger due to Reza’s own affiliations.

Quite simply, the story opens …..

Hajiya Binta Zubairu was finally born at fifty-five when a dark-lipped rogue with short, spiky hair, like a field of minuscule anthills, scaled her fence and landed, boots and all, in the puddle that was her heart.

Full of twists, turns and more than a bit of tension both from the politics and the relationship, with an ending that is, if not entirely surprising, wholly appropriate the story evokes those conflicted and conflicting human emotions, choices and decisions that are common to all. Additionally with presenting a story that is unapologetically African in feel and language, Ibrihim also smashes expectations of culprits and antagonists a story heavily flavored with languages, religious fervors and even political corruption so prevalent in Nigeria, he presents these without polemic or judgement allowing the effected people to present a human response, not a carefully westernized version of events.

Outstanding is the diversity, with words, attitudes and descriptions that educate and enlighten without Ibrihim’s efforts to sanitize, apologize or consciously pander to soften the story, challenging readers to open their minds as they turn the pages.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via Edelweiss for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for his review all conclusions are my own responsibility.
I was not fond of any of the characters. And there was too much foreign language.
Powerful evocation of life in northern Nigeria. And beautifully written. I particularly appreciate the honest reckoning with the force of personal passions in conflict with social norms in a world where public morality is a shared obsession and nothing stays private for long.
Every life is an interwoven canvas if complexities that are played out in the arena of family, religion, love, lust and politics. Crimson Blossoms does an admirable job of painting this canvas for us.
Thoughtful, engaging, well-written. It took me a while to get into this book because I found the names confusing, but that is just my own cultural unfamiliarity. The world of Season of Crimson Blossoms pulled me in deeply, it's one of the most memorable novels I've read in some time and a window into a world that is so different from my own. Highly recommended.
I appreciated reading a book filled with Hausa culture and language-- something that im not use to. The story was intriguing. I liked the unique story that the main character had. She was both a heroine and villain at the same time. Although a good read, I felt it took a little while for the plot to develop. Nonetheless I'd still recommend it.