OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Ngozi-Blessing" by Cynthia Banks- Obinabo.]

Ngozi-Blessing is the retelling of an African fable by Cynthia Banks-Obinabo. It is the story of two sisters. The elder sister is named Eucharia. She is eighteen years old and exceptionally beautiful, but she has an unpleasant personality. She is short-tempered, selfish, sharp-tongued, and does not like to do her fair share of work. The younger sister, Ngozi, is seventeen years old. She has a pleasant personality and is always willing to help others.

One day when Eucharia is out walking, she chances on a hut that she has never seen before. Inside the hut, there is an elderly woman who asks Eucharia to give her a drink of water. Eucharia notices that the woman could reach the water herself, but she agrees to give her the water. The woman then asks Eucharia to scratch her back. As Eucharia does what the woman asks, her hands become bruised and bleeding, and she expresses her displeasure at this occurrence.

The old woman then tells Eucharia that in the next room, she will find a reward for her help. The room is filled with gems, and Eucharia fills a basket with the gems. She then leaves without thanking the old woman for the treasure. When she returns home with the gems, she discovers to her horror that she cannot speak without snakes falling from her mouth. It now falls to Ngozi to find a cure for her sister. The second part of the story details Ngozi’s adventures.

Although this is categorized as a children’s book, I feel that it would be of interest to anyone who enjoys folk tales and likes studying world mythology. The story may not appeal to very young children. There are no pictures, and some kids might find what happens to Eucharia disturbing. The story contains no profanity, graphic violence, or erotic descriptions. It is appropriate for middle-grade readers and older.

I believe that the book is professionally edited. I found no errors in the text.

There was nothing that I disliked about the story. I would have enjoyed some illustrations, but for an older reader, the book works fine without them. I would enjoy reading a collection of stories like this one. This book is appropriate for most readers, although someone who dislikes folk tales would, doubtless, not enjoy it very much.

I give Ngozi-Blessing four out of four stars. I appreciated the author sharing this story from her childhood and hope that she might share more stories in the future.

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Ngozi-Blessing
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I remember a similar story in a tales book my grandma used to read me. It will be interesting to read the African version. Thank you for the review!

I have not read a story like this one before! I do agree that it would be better suited for older children, but it sounds as though it has some valuable lessons in it.

It is interesting to see folk tales that is spared from stereotypes and would like to consider reading this as well to younger family members.

Why is it, any African made story gave joy to me.

This reminds me of tales by moonlight (and Medusa’s Greek mythology in a way); an African tradition of gathering round in the evenings after supper to listen to folktales, mostly told by the older ones.
At the end of which they’ll ask everyone what lessons they learnt. I’m Nigerian, so this is relatable.