Benjamin Kwakye

 

Midwest Book Review (Excerpts)

 

"Seasons of Four Faces adds to … Kwakye's lineup with a vivid, wide-ranging story of Africa presented in four parts.

 

From its opening lines, it's evident that Seasons of Four Faces also embraces a literary reflective format that melds philosophical musing with its insights, which will prove a satisfying feature to fiction readers looking for as much literary prowess as entertainment value from their pursuits….

 

Libraries seeking African-authored literary fiction that embeds its drama with spiritual, psychological, historical, and cultural insights suitable for book club and reader group recommendation will find the multifaceted journey of Seasons of Four Faces to be compelling. It promises much more connectivity and accessibility to its audience than many fictional pursuits of African experience, placing it heads and shoulders above many similar-sounding literary ventures."

 

– D. Donovan

Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

 

Independent Book Review (Excerpts)

 

"A transcendental story of a mythic man in  love with a mythic woman.

 

Almost like a Forrest Gump of African history, Seasons of Four Faces brings Tiempo, a mythically powerful man from Pharoah's Egypt to Mecca with Mansa Musa to the War of the Golden Stool, and, in the end, to Ghana, fighting for independence.

 

Benjamin Kwakye showcases his creativity, forethought, and tactical structuring skills in his epic... This book takes great care to engage us on the line level as much as it does on the plot level. The sentences are crafted with an eye for detail, an appreciation for sound, and a tone that matches the historical world.

 

Seasons of Four Faces is a chance to time travel. Not only for you to head back to Pharaoh times but for you to transcend generations alongside a timeless, powerful, mythic main character. There's a lot to unpack in this book. So get started."

 

The Prairies Book Review (Excerpts)

 

Epic in scope, intoxicating, and ultimately deeply moving… Kwakye's epic literary tale explores how historical events shape modern society and personal journeys, taking readers through a moving love story between two very different people… The story is deeply rooted in the cultural and historical context of Ghana, providing readers with insights into the complexities of the nation's post-colonial identity. Kwakye's attention to detail in depicting the social and political landscape enriches the narrative, making it not only a love story but also a commentary on the broader human experience. Fans of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o and Buchi Emecheta will find much to admire in this powerful novel. 

 

New and Selected Poems (2017-2023)

 

"Benjamin Kwakye's Obsessions of Paradise is a very clever novel about human inter-connectedness and the power of love. The cleverness lies partly in the presentation of the two major and parallel experiences and the way in which they are brought together at the end… in a consistently subtle and evocative writing style. Obsessions of Paradise is a compelling and suspenseful page-turner."  — African Literature Association Citation for Book of the Year Award 

 

 

"The tales of these couples—Ama and Shem, Maud and George—seem starkly different, but their futures are all bound up together in this novel that explores the interconnected modern world. Kwakye's (Songs of a Jealous Wind, 2018, etc.) prose finds the tension in the strangeness of place… a bubbling mysteriousness rooted in desire and longing will propel readers ever deeper into this idiosyncratic story... An oddly compelling tale of two connected couples separated by geography and culture." — Kirkus Reviews

 

 

With a keen focus on the strains of both voluntary and forced relocations, this novel blends the divergent experiences of various nationals into a coherent voice of love.  Obsessions of Paradise chronicles the oft dehumanizing odyssey of migrants in search of hope, at the same time as it is a tender story of insecure but compelling love.  Ama, a Ghanaian doctor based in the United States, is entangled in an improbable if compelling relationship with the destitute Shem.  As their relationship dangles on the tightrope of social stigma, another one that seems surefooted is developing between Maud, a London doctor whose family fled Zimbabwe after persecution over land disputes, and George, a local businessman with international connections who flirts with racial politics.  The men embark on fate altering journeys to Libya, one in hope of a better life, the other to promote business interests.  In Libya, the doctors will confront each other and their men in ways none of them would have imagined. Amid the shock of encountering human-trafficking, and faced with a redemptive option in the face of potential calamity, their ultimate choices illustrate what Kwakye labels the ethnicity of our humanity and demonstrate that love can, and must, speak to all.