THE DIARIES OF AN AFRICAN IMMIGRANT

The Diaries of an African Immigrant is a novel without chapters that presents a moving timeline of events in the life of a troubled young man Ismael who migrated from Freetown to Canada, finds himself in the University of Toronto a divorced and desolate man. The novel cleverly weaves several historical accounts into its narrative. It takes the reader through the eyes of Ismael the main character, into the memory lane of the past. So doing it gives a rare glimpse into pre-modern Africa during the years of the slave trade. It presents a heart breaking picture of unfounded bravery and sacrifice of a native fraternity the Poro, to halt enslavement of its people by slave traders from North America referred to in the novel as the pale people from across the ocean. Within the theme of this struggle, it explores the connivance of Africans described as an evil set of people belonging to the Cult Of The Dead who collaborate with slave traders to kidnap people and sell them off into slavery. The novel narrates the desperation and grief caused by the feeling of loss and powerlessness of the communities and families that were directly affected by these events. It records the prayers they offered, the things they said and did during this grief stricken period according to their traditions. Using the characters as a pivot, it moves the reader along the time lane to narrate the story of the descendants of these same African communities in the colonial era, fighting as allies in the Second World War. At this point they are suddenly introduced to new cultures and a new war far worst than any they have ever experienced. Through the colonial influence, they encounter a new way of life to which education and organized religion become central. The Diaries of an African Immigrant, cleverly weaves this story to the present and the future encapsulated in a single character Ismael, to explore the modern day experience of life in North America particularly in Toronto as narrated from the eyes of a stranger. This is pursued through a compendium of tightly woven events that plague Ismael. Designed to provoke the reader, it covers sensitive topics such as religious rivalry, sexuality and prejudice from the eyes of an outsider. It is a fast moving account of life in Toronto, the lingering prejudices faced by Africans and the enduring tensions of multiculturalism from the perspective of Ismael who is meticulously recording the ideas that have influenced his life: The places he has been. The things he has seen. The things he has done and the things that have been done to him. The novel presents Toronto as a city where strangers are impeded from reaching their full potential quickly through a series of important unwritten codes and organized action by older group of residents and institutions. An example of this group of residents are a kind of feminists that it calls fedominists, who carryout a practise referred to as the Toronto initiation. This situation is further complicated by insinuating that immigrants or strangers generally, could unsuspectingly be trapped in the not too obvious fight between the conservative Christians referred to as haters and the alternative religion mafia that is struggling to dominate Toronto and convert it into the sin capital of Canada. The struggle between these groups leads to further personal anguish and economic hardship for newcomers caught in the middle. The Diaries of an African Immigrant is full of many kinds of subtle communication and meaning. Nothing is absolutely what it appears on the surface for everyone. From the cover page to the last period in the book, it is possible to infer something deeper into the images and the words that are being conjured beyond what immediately meets the eyes. In so doing this brings about a more complete fulfillment of personal meaning of what you are reading from your own life experience. And more so, you would probably be right in what you come up with. It is not surprising that the novel would live up to its promise of causing some discomfort to anyone who ever reads it, but would be pleasing in other areas too as it touches and releases the emotional pulse of almost any reader.
The novel is set in Toronto Canada and Freetown Sierra Leone where the main character of the plot, Ismael begins his journey. In this novel Ismael represents an encapsulation of the immigrant experience. He is the vehicle by which the story moves through time and around whom the experiences recounted in the book are collated. This novel would appeal to many classes of readers since it provides something for the analytical academic reader and someone who only reads for the pleasure of it. It is an exciting and pleasurable look into memory lane of times past. It provides a rare glimpse into the situation of African communities during the slave trade particularly what those affected would have said or done.