Despite being a successful journalist/writer for the Guardian with a loving adopted family and a well adjusted life in the UK with all its imperfections, Hannah never stopped wondering about her biological mom who died following child birth. Thousand questions flooded her brain when one of her brothers contacted her through a letter which led to a meeting with a cousin in the UK after which she decided to take the plunge and visit her family, including her father who was still very much alive and not dead as presumed in Eritrea.
Overwhelmed by the discovery of numerous "cousins" and aunts and uncles and the agonizing preparation (should i wear long skirts, how long, kind of head cover etc) she lands in Asmara and is greeted by an entourage of emotional Eritreans all claiming some relationship to her. Relying on two of her brothers (a statistician and a teacher) for translation she has a hard time navigating through her family and finds that the British stiff upper lip comes innately to her rescue. The meeting with her older sister with whom she strikes up a warm relationship despite the language barrier leaves her wanting for more. Initially she finds it condescending that her brothers "took care of her" but slowly she lets go of that feeling and starts to bask in its warmth. Although she gets along with her father, there is the nagging question in her mind about why she was given up for adoption and that acts as a barrier in her relationship.
When it is time for her father and her sister to get back to their native villages, she decides to follow them much against the advice of everyone. It is the trip to Keren, her father's and sister's villages and her own birth place that is the most poignant and well written portion of the book. She encounters for the first time the poverty of Eritrea which she has read so much about, but didn't really "see" in Asmara the capital. She compares and contrasts her own life with that of her two relatively middle class brothers and that of her sister. Did they think she was lucky to be adopted by a white couple? Would she trade her life of luxury for the sense of belonging to a family? Sitting on the bed that she was born in and seeing for the first time truly the hard life that members of her family face day to day she finally understands her father's motives behind giving her up for adoption. The few days she spends in the villages of Eritrea became instrumental in her own internal journey which gave her a sense of belonging that she so longed for all her life.
In the end the book stands out for two reasons
1) She successfully captures in some beautiful passages the complex world that is Eritrea - the wedding ceremonies, the patriarchial customs, the food (injera bread and shoru and the coffee), rural Vs urban life, role of expats, returnees, the UN's presence, the war with Ethiopia, struggles of the youth etc
2) Going from being an orphan to a member of a large family, her effort to reconcile her Africanness in Britain and her Britishness in Africa is one of the most honest pieces of writing that I've seen. A secular, liberal career minded woman, with a middle class accent and appropriate Britishness still stands out in her adopted country because of her skin color and her African origins (which she tried hard to distance herself from). She now finds herself in a religious, conservative, traditional, patriarchal society and manages to stand out despite her pigmentation. How does she deal with that and all the baggage of guilt and anger that she has carried with her all her life is the crux of the book.
The book is an emotional roller coaster and although sometimes she spells out her vacillating thoughts, panic and doubts in excruciating details overall it is an amazing read.
Overwhelmed by the discovery of numerous "cousins" and aunts and uncles and the agonizing preparation (should i wear long skirts, how long, kind of head cover etc) she lands in Asmara and is greeted by an entourage of emotional Eritreans all claiming some relationship to her. Relying on two of her brothers (a statistician and a teacher) for translation she has a hard time navigating through her family and finds that the British stiff upper lip comes innately to her rescue. The meeting with her older sister with whom she strikes up a warm relationship despite the language barrier leaves her wanting for more. Initially she finds it condescending that her brothers "took care of her" but slowly she lets go of that feeling and starts to bask in its warmth. Although she gets along with her father, there is the nagging question in her mind about why she was given up for adoption and that acts as a barrier in her relationship.
When it is time for her father and her sister to get back to their native villages, she decides to follow them much against the advice of everyone. It is the trip to Keren, her father's and sister's villages and her own birth place that is the most poignant and well written portion of the book. She encounters for the first time the poverty of Eritrea which she has read so much about, but didn't really "see" in Asmara the capital. She compares and contrasts her own life with that of her two relatively middle class brothers and that of her sister. Did they think she was lucky to be adopted by a white couple? Would she trade her life of luxury for the sense of belonging to a family? Sitting on the bed that she was born in and seeing for the first time truly the hard life that members of her family face day to day she finally understands her father's motives behind giving her up for adoption. The few days she spends in the villages of Eritrea became instrumental in her own internal journey which gave her a sense of belonging that she so longed for all her life.
In the end the book stands out for two reasons
1) She successfully captures in some beautiful passages the complex world that is Eritrea - the wedding ceremonies, the patriarchial customs, the food (injera bread and shoru and the coffee), rural Vs urban life, role of expats, returnees, the UN's presence, the war with Ethiopia, struggles of the youth etc
2) Going from being an orphan to a member of a large family, her effort to reconcile her Africanness in Britain and her Britishness in Africa is one of the most honest pieces of writing that I've seen. A secular, liberal career minded woman, with a middle class accent and appropriate Britishness still stands out in her adopted country because of her skin color and her African origins (which she tried hard to distance herself from). She now finds herself in a religious, conservative, traditional, patriarchal society and manages to stand out despite her pigmentation. How does she deal with that and all the baggage of guilt and anger that she has carried with her all her life is the crux of the book.
The book is an emotional roller coaster and although sometimes she spells out her vacillating thoughts, panic and doubts in excruciating details overall it is an amazing read.
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