In his first book, Jentola Jenkins accentuates the arrival of the African short story genre to e-book readers across the world. Sadder Days is a collection of short stories drawn from the ills of a warped fictitious West African society. It portrays the silent rage that pervades young people in today’s African democracies. Using fiction the author subtly seeks redress for the populace across West Africa, many of whom have become victims in their resource-rich countries; many of whom have dreams that will most certainly be cut from fruition because of a dearth of infrastructure. The collection cascades the problems of rural urban migration in the flagship story, Sadder Days and the disillusioning impact of an unresponsive leadership in Tales from a Failed Manhood.
Here’s an excerpt from one of the stories, Election Morning with the exclusive permission of the author:
‘Ebhato seemed to heat up as it reached dusk. Sitting on a keg of gunpowder, an explosion was imminent. Something of premonition told Lucky he was running out of time as his watch struck 7pm. Party agents had but a few minutes to stuff the ballot boxes they had snatched under the watchful eyes of the amiable Lance Corporal. The electoral laws required all counting end at 1930 hours. Boxes were jostled in, in a haphazard bid to get them to the electoral officer for counting. The UNCP and GDM agents had been restive all morning citing fraud at every instance they felt DPN votes were ahead of theirs. And with clear signs that they had each been overrun at the morning’s ballot stuffing exercise, pandemonium broke out. Party agents came out at each other from every conceivable point around the polling station brandishing locally made guns and machetes. The few voters left, scampered quickly for cover as the amiable Lance Corporal finally opened fire into the air or so we thought, only to find Lucky stoned, with a ballot box in hand and a bullet in his head.‘
Sadder Days is a provocative agitation against trafficking ,rigging and other social facades that colour the way Africans view life. A brisk read!
Sadder Days can be bought exclusively as an ebook on Amazon.com and Smashwords.com
