I was a bit skeptical reading the book, The Death of Comrade President by Alain Mabanckou. This is because reading about politics in Africa irritates and saddens me. However, I was pleasantly surprised that the author chose to write the book from the perspective of Michel, a young boy.
The tone of the narrator, Michel, is childlike and authentic. His naivety and innocence were both funny and annoying. The fact that he so much believed in the “The White Cranes,” is unsurprising for a child his age. It makes me wonder about the “unreasonable/impossible” things I also believed when I was his age.
Though, it’s impossible for him to have been able to recall, word for word, all that he heard been discussed. But the fact that we were limited to only his perspective, ( i.e. he was the only point of view chosen by the author), made a case for him to be able to tell it all.
I like the use of the poetic device of refrain i.e. the constant repetition of a certain statement by Michel, “….to do things that I won’t go into here or people will say Michel always exaggerates and sometimes he says rude things without meaning to.”
His concern for his dog, Mboua Mabe, and his readiness to risk his life to go looking for the dog made me a little anxious for him.
The use of satire is what makes the book relatively easy to read, as there was a lot of information dumped on us that we could do without. The book can’t readily be classified as a work of fiction, and this is substantiated by some of the recorded political history of Congo, which bears close semblance to the events in the book. The references to the events in other countries in Africa also gave an insight into how Africans perceived their fellow Africans.
Maman Pauline and Papa Roger as a couple are two interesting, and contrasting individuals. Maman Pauline is a proud, stubborn woman, blessed with an understanding and supportive husband in Papa Roger, yet she single-handedly manages to ruin it all.
It was a beautiful but sad ending. It’s sad because Maman Pauline and the rest of the family might probably end up dead. But it’s beautiful because it was a cliffhanger, we don’t know for sure what will happen to Maman Pauline and the rest of the family. Thus, we are left with more questions than answers. But that’s how I believe the conclusion of a book should be.
A book, like a movie, only captures a time zone. There were events before that time zone, and there would be events after that time zone. Also, the fact that no one would leave this world alive, shows there are no happy endings in life. Thus, to attempt to provide all the answers to the questions that will arise, or to ensure everyone gets what they want would always feel contrived.
Signed
Olumide Holloway (King Olulu)
