Novelist Matshidiso Taleng salutes Omoseye Bolaji on his Birthday

By Matshidiso Taleng (below)

If you want you can call him "Heaven Sent" "an Angel from above" I personally consider myself blessed to know Mr Omoseye Bolaji and today (August 16) on his birthday, I feel like saying happy birthday to him would be plain, because through all the years I've known him, he has taught me everything I needed to know about literature.

When I published my first book in 2013 I had no clue who Mr Omoseye Bolaji was, a journalist from the Free State news came to me at the Bloemfontein Library one day and said Mr Bolaji's been looking for me and struggling to get my contact details from anyone, that he wants an interview with me, I asked her who Mr Bolaji was and why can't she do the interview instead, she told me that Mr Bolaji wants to do the interview himself, we then set an appointment for the next day for me to go to their offices.

When I got home that day, I surfed the internet and searched for Mr Omoseye Bolaji... And God was I amazed, to have read such great stories about this man! It then scared me a little because now I didn't know what was I going to say and prayed I don't say something stupid during the interview with the great literary bard, I even wanted to cancel the interview right there and then.

The next morning I went there and waited in the other room where this lady from yesterday was, I sat with her and had a little chat while I wait for Mr Bolaji to finish what he was doing in his office, he called me to his office when he was done, I got there and here's the first thing he said to me "wow! Its the Supper star herself, you're very difficult to get hold of, but I guess that's what you supper starts do, very busy" and then he laughed. It baffled me a bit because yesterday was the first time I heard of him and that he's been looking for me, I asked him what he meant by "very difficult to get hold of" because he knew people who had my contact details, he said he asked them but they didn't give them to him, we don't know why.

So we did the interview and despite my nerves and all, the interview went well, then he asked for my email address, since from that day I made it my mission to read all the books written by him and since that day.Mr Bolaji started sending me so many stories and articles to read, sometimes I'd want to lie and say I read them, but I knew he was going to ask for my opinion on whatever he sent at that time, so then I'd read and give him my thoughts, I was confused at first as to why this man was sending me so many stories and articles, but I got to know when he said to me one day "you see, now you're coming right, I always knew you were a smart young lady" that's when it hit me that Mr Bolaji's actually mentoring me to be a greater writer, I ended up enjoying the stories, most of them were funny, and some of them were sad, but they were the most exquisite stories I've ever read.

When he told me that he was going back to his country, I was crushed, I started wondering how he was going to continue mentoring me and if he will continue, because I assumed that once he got home he was going to forget or be too busy to attend to my emails, but he promised to keep in touch, and till today he still is.

I remember with my second book (a novel, Unfolding the Documentary). It started as a short story on my blog, Mr Bolaji read it one day and said to me "this is a beautiful story Star, you just can't leave it like this" I asked what he wanted me to do, he said I should prolong it and make it a novella or novel, I laughed and thought the Old man was crazy now, and that Old Age was getting to him, I didn't think I could do it, but he encouraged me and said if I think I can't make it a novel then I should make it a novella because it was a beautiful story that just can't be left like that. So then I did it, he was with me every step of the way, there came a time when my laptop crashed and I lost everything and I didn't have back-up, I cried so much and emailed him, told him I was giving up because now the story was gone, he said "Relax star, its not the end of the world, this happens to many of us, relax.. The story will come to you again if you've forgotten what you wrote, it'll come and you'll write again"

At that time I didn't understand what he was saying because I was frustrated, I beat myself up for thinking I could ever write a novel, I thought it was God's way of showing me that I could never write a novel, that I should just stick to poetry, but the great ever so shy and always ready to advice, Malome was there to help me throughout all that unhappy period of my life, the story came bit by bit in my head but now all I could remember was towards the end of it, I spoke to Malome about it and he said I should start my story there... I should start it with the end, then as I go further I'll remember how I went about it or I'll even come up with a new storyline. My creative juices came back and I wrote. He laughed at me when I told him that the story exceeded and it doesn't end where he knew it ended, then he said to me "now you have your Novel Mama" I finished the book, published it and dedicated it to him, all because he knew all the blood sweat and tears that I went through to get it done and was with me every step of the way, though he was halfway across the world, he managed to help me through that difficult time.

Knowing Mr Bolaji (pix, above) has been a privilege and a blessing in my life, I have never met anyone of his calibre be so kind and helpful in anyway possible, I thank him for his undying support and mentorship, he is simply the greatest of them all.

I have never seen him angry at all and I hope I never will, even when someone has upset him by saying hurtful things about him, he'd still talk good about them and tell me not to fight with them or start disrespecting them in any kind of way. When he got sick, I remember he used to refer to himself as "the old dying Malome" or "the old finished Malome" hahahaha! Well you're not dead Malome, just getting older.. I did tell you that you'll still be here when my book is out and here you are... Still alive and kicking, hahaha! Happy Birthday Malome, may you grow even older to see more years of joy and happiness, God bless you to continue mentoring me and the long list of others, may He bless you to continue being the soft-hearted person that you are at all times... Suke!

LET'S TAKE A WALK MAMA

Collection of poems by Tiisetso M Thiba

Introduction by Omoseye Bolaji

Published by First Born Distribution (South Africa)

INTRODUCTION

The genre of literature -never mind poetry for a moment - though admittedly global, is nonetheless hydra-headed in many ways, with disparate hues even whilst employing a common language.

Thus amidst classical English poets, the use of language, imagery and kindred ideas varies. The poetry of the likes of T.S. Eliot, William Shakespeare, Emily Bronte, Thomas Hardy, D. H. Lawrence is notable for its dissimilarity despite their common inheritance. How much more African poets to whom English, French or Portuguese are essentially foreign languages?

But as pioneering - and powerful -African poet, J. P (John Pepper) Clark, once said, African writers, specifically poets, would still want to regard themselves as writing within the same "international canon and stream". And can we doubt even for a moment that African poets like Mongane Serote, Lenrie Peters, Wole Soyinka,  Jack Mapanje, or J. P Clark himself are not mainstream poets?

Yet for many African writers and poets, there is also the element of integrity; whilst they want to be part of the warp and weft of mainstream writing, they also want to be considered as authentic African writers as regards their subject matter, ideas and the very language and imagery they use. This is not a trivial issue, as witness the long-standing feud between revered writers Chinua Achebe and Ayi Kwei Armah, with the latter nettled at the suggestion that he might not be a "real African writer".

The late literary giant Nadine Gordimer, once opined that "African writers are always translating from their mother tongues" – which invariably adds a subtle richness to their writing.

Indeed, there can be no doubt about the fecundity and remarkable expressiveness of our indigenous African languages. The plethora of proverbs, idioms, wise saws, imagery, "wisecracks" can be seen reflected in the works of diverse writers, even when they are writing in so-called European languages.

It is universally acknowledged in the literary world that Chinua Achebe was not only technically adroit and accomplished as a prose-stylist, but he was unambiguously "African" in the process too, with the fascinating litany of Igbo expressions, ideas, aphorisms that dot his work.

The same could be largely claimed for the likes of Chukwuemeka Ike, Zakes Mda, T. M Aluko, Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Ama Ata Aidoo, among others - all African writers who combine prose of a fairly high order with (intrinsic translations) of their own linguistic heritage.

From the point of view of the western world, Gabriel Okara might well have gone too far in his novel, The Voice which contains prose directly translated from his native Ijaw into English with scarcely any mediation. But on the whole, skilful African writers often manage to be authentic in their writing.

Which brings me to this book, and its author, Tiisetso Matthew Thiba. I have been somewhat familiar with his imaginative writing for some years now; at the moment poetry is definitely his forte.

Thiba writes a lot of poetry, and the exciting thing about his repertoire is the way he effortlessly combines fine, striking verses in the western sense with quintessential African traditional expressions and imagery. I have found this startling many a time, and the reader of this work would no doubt see many examples of this for themselves.

Ultimately, one day I was prodded to ask Mr. Thiba: "Your poetry is often what one would expect from an elderly African, not from a young man like you. How do you do it?" And he replied with a saturnine smile: "You see Mr. Bolaji I grew up in a real African village where things were still very much as they were in the past, the ancestral cultures, which included language and philosophy. I guess this is reflected in my poetry..."

Ah, well. Enjoy this debut work of Ntate Tiisetso Matthew Thiba.

         - By Omoseye Bolaji

OMOSEYE BOLAJI’S BIRTHDAY BASH

  

The literary world reverberates this weekend as distinguished, creative writer Omoseye Bolaji celebrates his birthday. The occasion will be marked in selected literary centres in South Africa, and in west Africa.   

A most fecund writer, extraordinary literary activist and catalyst for decades, Bolaji was also a long-standing  editor at Free State News where he presided over countless diamond-studded literary-critical features, most of which have now been published in diverse journals and books all over the world.   

In Bloemfontein this weekend a keynote address on the life and works of Bolaji will be delivered by the well-known author, critic, and Pan Africanist, Mr Ishmael Mwandile Soqaga (his speech will be published exclusively in Free State News next week).

A visibly elated Soqaga told Free State News this week: "No praise is too much for this great son of Africa, Ntate Bolaji who has augmented respect for blacks worldwide in the sphere of arts and culture. In the history of Africa I think Bolaji's influence can only be likened to that of Ulli Beier - my speech will focus on
this, and much more,"  

Also in the eastern Free State, a symposium on the "galvanic influence of Bolaji" will be taking place in Clocolan this weekend. The event will be anchored by the
award-winning novelist, Mr George Rampai.    

Literary pundits worldwide continue to focus on the literary work of Bolaji, especially his technicolour fiction. How does one even begin to scratch the surface of the fiction of an African writer who has been quite prolific like Omoseye Bolaji? I suppose the same daunting obstacles will apply to the likes of Es’kia, Ngugi, Achebe, and many other greats.

Most of us would rather focus on a few memorable works of a particular author. Like Fools of Njabulo Ndebele. One advantage Bolaji has is that his fiction is generally memorable, brisk and exciting. Take works like Impossible love (2000) and Ghostly adversary (2001) for example. These are books we can re-read with pleasure. The love story in the first is enchantingly yet realistically told. Most readers seem to agree that Ghostly Adversary  is a well written thriller. Bolaji's Tebogo Mystery series - now eight in all – is readable, often keeps us guessing, and informative.

One aspect that impresses me is how the author grapples with language, ranging from somewhat refined prose to bathos. Consider this passage from Tebogo fails (2003) for example – ‘We got to a sort of field, like a meadow, copse, quite attractive. It was a romantic setting. Shame about those who abused the place, stalking, slinking in the dark, ready to pounce on individual females who chanced to use this route alone. But the ambience itself was magnificent. Made for lovers... Youngsters no matter how intelligent, often have a devil-may-care trait in them, a predilection to brave the world and its perils sometimes. Undoubtedly, many females here must have traversed this quote short cut route in the dark, intermittently. Rape is different from murder. No child believes he/she would be killed. Decent people do not harm the young of the world....”

To his credit, Bolaji creates fiction and language many ordinary readers in Africa can identify with. The above quote shows his prose at a fairly high level - though it can be quite uneven. But note the very first sentence of his latest Tebogo adventure: ‘The wind seemed to have a malevolent, jeering quintessence on that day..’ Tebogo and the bacchae (2012) Thereafter, the prose is relatively simple, though.

In her study of the Tebogo Mystery series - Tebogo on the prowl (2006) – critic Petro Schonfeld seems bemused with the style of Ask Tebogo (2004). She writes: 'It seems that the narrator, and sometimes even the minor characters, uses a somewhat more formal language in this novelette. The style differs from the others in the series. It could be that the author wants to emphasise Dave's essays or he wants to blend a unity. Examples of English expressions and aphorisms are abundant...the sentence construction and word choices are sometimes more formal...' (Page 28)

In People of the townships (2003) Bolaji seems to achieve the perfect equilibrium of language that makes the work still a sterling achievement. John Lefuo, the main character is clearly a semi-literate (in theory), but his love for reading makes him such a fine narrator, despite his intermittent stylistic infelicities.

Aryan Kaganof, writing on People of the townships, states: 'The pace of the writing is so snappy and its un-putdownable factor so high that the reader is left out of breath as I imagine protagonist John Lefuo must have been at the end of his last Sunday walk as a free man...this is a relentlessly grim novel that is surprisingly funny along the way. There are some hilarious dialogues...'

As part of the birthday celebrations, a brand-new book authored by Bolaji will also be presented this weekend. It is titled "Far Up! Far Out! Far More!" Those interested in the book can phone 074 0467177

-         - Report by P Lechesa and L Giwa (Courtesy of Free State News)

Omoseye Bolaji's new book, WINDMILLS OF THE DAMES

ISBN 978-0-620-61396-5

Published by First Born Distribution

“Omoseye Bolaji is an illustrious African writer whose body of work straddles many genres - fiction, poetry, drama, criticism, sports etc. Over the years he has published some 30 books which showcase his breath-taking range and breadth.

“This his latest work, Windmills of the Dames (2014) follows on the heels of earlier works of his like Thoughts on Free State Writing (2002), Miscellaneous Writings (2011) and It couldn't matter less (2013). Here we can savour a flotilla of gripping shorter writings that run the gamut of human experience. “ – from the blurb