Seun Odukoya’s FOR DAYS AND A NIGHT is a 54 page e-book that
has the nuance of crazy meets unconventional.
The narration is simple and borders on the mundane. Yet this is not
necessarily a disadvantage; the imagination and subtle psycho analysis that accompanies
the reader through every page is no doubt enough to keep the reader seeking to
demystify the thought processes that gave the book life.
The book starts with a rather queer story of an aspiring
writer, at midnight, in conversation with two people who we find out in the end
are not really what or who they first appeared to be. It does however drip with
a call for belief in one’s capacity to achieve greatness without much
extraneous aids beyond hard work and determination.
In a story like ‘Which Kain Work’, we are brought face to
face with the dilemma of a Nigerian police man who is enmeshed in the vagaries
of life as a Nigerian cop, yet cannot fathom why his young son is more proud
than he is of the Police force and the job that they do. It ends rather resignedly with “… I hate my
job, but someone has to do it”
In ‘Pillow talk’ and ‘Walken’, it becomes unarguably clear
that Seun lives on a special dose of crazy from day to day. ‘Walken’ presents
us with yet another writer who in the middle of contemplating what story to
send in for the Commonwealth prize, gets a call from a girlfriend whom he lost
to Jaundice. What a story! This ending is quite memorable: “Sola was dead. Yet
there she was calling me over fifteen years later, sounding as alive as a point-and-kill
fish before execution. I think I peed in my pants.”
In ‘A game called Life’, one is introduced to the classical
male chauvinistic mind, and in ‘Eba’, one is pushed to ask the question:
Seriously? Would a full grown woman actually google how to make eba?
Sometimes fiction stretches plausibility in this book, and it would seem that
the author was being a bit too ambitious with some tales. But in the middle of
all that one encounters ‘My Little Girl’ and reality melts your heart at a
daughter’s concern for her father.
A few pieces leave the reader feeling lost, almost as if
they had no place in the book at all, and just happened to get dropped there as
an afterthought. ‘Looking for Hope’ and ‘A story or...’ fit this category
perfectly. But with a story like ‘A moment’, where a farting moment morphs into
lifetime partnership, laughter becomes the thrill.
The book is laden with exciting skits, from Seun’s
confession about missing his mommy (Bless her soul) to subtle jabs on women’s
ways and the sweetest of them all: a public service announcement on where to
get help if one is experiencing domestic violence.
It is my sincere belief that a little more editing would
have done the book some good. Such creativity and daring should not be marred
by the avoidable errors which littered some of the pages. I wonder if a paper
version of the book will be available at any point in time.
This whole work is colourfully laid out with interesting
illustrations and art. In all, it feels like a fresh wind blowing across the
literary terrain. So, this is my big pat on the back for Seun Odukoya; your
crase dey read error for meter. Wish you many more endeavours ahead! If you would like to read the book, check Here
