The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa by Stephen Buoro

 

 Andy Africa is fifteen years old. He is Catholic. He is a poet. Andy is also a phenomenon and an enigma.  Although, there are none living in Africa, He adores white, blonde girls. His mother's color is likened to a dark berry. Does he really love  his mother,or does he hate her color and love her motherly character. After all, he is definitely in love with white. His answer is I love her deeply. It's hard to take that as a truthful statement. This is what makes his story so tantalizing. It is the absurdity.

Then, all of a sudden you can hear the poet inside him striving to get out. That it is poetry is impossible to  ignore. Ydna, the brother, of Andy Africa, is weaved into his anatomy.  From the grave, Ydna speaks to Andy and his mother. He is never forgotten. Like a poem, Ydna is always there when he needs him. He is magical.Ydna  comes in a light breeze. The truth is he entered world through a Cesarian birth. Andy and his mother lived through that difficult labor. 

However, Ydna stayed in the spirit world. This allows him to remain closer than a living person because now he is physical and spiritual.  This type of birth, Cesarian, allows Stephen Buoro the chance to resurrect again and again in his brother. It is also a way to become closer to his mother who loves Andy so much. without Ydna's untimely death has a poetic purpose. Andy's description of his bicycle accident to Ydna is expressive. Indeed , Ydna helps Andy Africa to see the spiritual world. Through Ydna, Andy has transcended Africa.