Official Review: From Kamit to the Stars by Clavaire Elanga
Posted: 28 Jun 2020, 04:03
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "From Kamit to the Stars" by Clavaire Elanga.]
From Kamit to the Stars by Clavaire Elanga was originally written in French, and only translated into English by Nathalie Blézer. The French title was L’apprehension d’un oui fatal, which translates as The Apprehension of a Fatal Yes. It is comprised of 5 chapters that followed the life of the main character, Rohman, born in a place called Kamit. In a sense, Kamit is more than just a geographical place, which was formerly inhabited by the Bantu Subsaharans in Ancient Egypt, prior to their southward migration in Central Africa. Kamit was of the culture that embodies the ideals of a Black civilization devoted to truth, justice, and equity — the attributes of their true God Amon-Ra. However, Rohman’s family, dwelling among the Bantus of the present times, was Catholic Christian, as the Bantus were not of the Fula ethnic group, which was comprised of the Muslim tribes that inhabited the Sahel and West Africa.
Rohman is still a bachelor at 32 and lives with his parents. It became a big issue for him, whether to accept or not, Diane, a woman brought home by his mother to become his wife. In his country, it was traditional for parents to arrange the marriage of their children. But Rohman has met many other women in the course of his work as a clerk of the Justice Department, if not by his travels. Men and women were usually drawn to him, not only impressed by his looks, but also by the vastness of his knowledge, culled mostly from personal readings, to make up for his lack of a college degree. While it could be said that women had brought Rohman to some lows in his life, and even got him imprisoned in some instances, equally, women had also brought Rohman to paradise, and more so have Ashley, who, in addition, proposed to bring him to the stars — at a cost. Could Rohman afford the price?
This novel is very timely. At the time when events point out to some Whites pressing for supremacy, here come the Bantu people, whose ascendancy has yet dated to the ancient Pharaohs of Egypt, claiming that Blackness is associated with moral grandeur. We were made privy to the revelation that Jesus, like Moses, was a black man. This book invokes common knowledge, historicity, and even the conspiracy theories on many topics, not only involving Blacks, but topics from science to superstition or religion; from the archeological to the astronomical; from Psychology to Philosophy; from the most mundane to the supernatural or the occult; and many more — encompassing the economy, politics, and the global power struggle. The novel seems like an exposition of facts, myths, and history.
I liked how Elanga bared the general mindset of the Bantu, or of Rohman, in particular — about how he had stuck to his ideals, even when in dire circumstances. Among the other deeds of Rohman, you could really admire him as he returns funds, not his own, even while on the run, and in need. They were people deeply concerned with family and honor.
As to the writing, I could not deny that it was done eloquently, although the presence of lengthy narratives and dialogue had taken the place of action at times. But this way, the characters got fully developed, and the setting amply described. However, one may notice the customized way that the dialogues were formatted. But I would not fault the writer for making it such because, as I read along, it became apparent that it has conveniently served a purpose. For one thing, I’ve noticed that the way most of the discourse had been spoken at considerable lengths, the opening quotation mark would be too far from the closing quotation mark, so as to render them hardly related as pairs. And it is understandable that when elders, or people knowledgeable on a subject, speak, these usually result in uninterrupted outpourings.
From Kamit to the Stars can’t be lightyears away from arriving, despite the errors that naturally plague books on their earlier editions. Another round of editing could easily fix the issues. And I enjoy the book, with its abundance of information, and good-humored drama. I recommend this to young adults and upwards, who had a liking for romance. I look forward to giving From Kamit to the Stars a rating higher than 3 out of 4 stars when the time comes.
******
From Kamit to the Stars
View: on Bookshelves
From Kamit to the Stars by Clavaire Elanga was originally written in French, and only translated into English by Nathalie Blézer. The French title was L’apprehension d’un oui fatal, which translates as The Apprehension of a Fatal Yes. It is comprised of 5 chapters that followed the life of the main character, Rohman, born in a place called Kamit. In a sense, Kamit is more than just a geographical place, which was formerly inhabited by the Bantu Subsaharans in Ancient Egypt, prior to their southward migration in Central Africa. Kamit was of the culture that embodies the ideals of a Black civilization devoted to truth, justice, and equity — the attributes of their true God Amon-Ra. However, Rohman’s family, dwelling among the Bantus of the present times, was Catholic Christian, as the Bantus were not of the Fula ethnic group, which was comprised of the Muslim tribes that inhabited the Sahel and West Africa.
Rohman is still a bachelor at 32 and lives with his parents. It became a big issue for him, whether to accept or not, Diane, a woman brought home by his mother to become his wife. In his country, it was traditional for parents to arrange the marriage of their children. But Rohman has met many other women in the course of his work as a clerk of the Justice Department, if not by his travels. Men and women were usually drawn to him, not only impressed by his looks, but also by the vastness of his knowledge, culled mostly from personal readings, to make up for his lack of a college degree. While it could be said that women had brought Rohman to some lows in his life, and even got him imprisoned in some instances, equally, women had also brought Rohman to paradise, and more so have Ashley, who, in addition, proposed to bring him to the stars — at a cost. Could Rohman afford the price?
This novel is very timely. At the time when events point out to some Whites pressing for supremacy, here come the Bantu people, whose ascendancy has yet dated to the ancient Pharaohs of Egypt, claiming that Blackness is associated with moral grandeur. We were made privy to the revelation that Jesus, like Moses, was a black man. This book invokes common knowledge, historicity, and even the conspiracy theories on many topics, not only involving Blacks, but topics from science to superstition or religion; from the archeological to the astronomical; from Psychology to Philosophy; from the most mundane to the supernatural or the occult; and many more — encompassing the economy, politics, and the global power struggle. The novel seems like an exposition of facts, myths, and history.
I liked how Elanga bared the general mindset of the Bantu, or of Rohman, in particular — about how he had stuck to his ideals, even when in dire circumstances. Among the other deeds of Rohman, you could really admire him as he returns funds, not his own, even while on the run, and in need. They were people deeply concerned with family and honor.
As to the writing, I could not deny that it was done eloquently, although the presence of lengthy narratives and dialogue had taken the place of action at times. But this way, the characters got fully developed, and the setting amply described. However, one may notice the customized way that the dialogues were formatted. But I would not fault the writer for making it such because, as I read along, it became apparent that it has conveniently served a purpose. For one thing, I’ve noticed that the way most of the discourse had been spoken at considerable lengths, the opening quotation mark would be too far from the closing quotation mark, so as to render them hardly related as pairs. And it is understandable that when elders, or people knowledgeable on a subject, speak, these usually result in uninterrupted outpourings.
From Kamit to the Stars can’t be lightyears away from arriving, despite the errors that naturally plague books on their earlier editions. Another round of editing could easily fix the issues. And I enjoy the book, with its abundance of information, and good-humored drama. I recommend this to young adults and upwards, who had a liking for romance. I look forward to giving From Kamit to the Stars a rating higher than 3 out of 4 stars when the time comes.
******
From Kamit to the Stars
View: on Bookshelves
