The Blight
Publisher: Achampong&Sons/ lulu.com
Published: 2009
Place of publication: USA
Language: eng
Number of pages: 480
Genres: African mystery
First sentence: They all agreed that the man looked a little bit off.
Description: The Blight is a tragicomic African mystery about a disorientated man's quest to regain his soul, literally. This creepy tale unravels through the flawed protagonist’s own twisted observations on a journey with disparate characters from the mean, pathetic psyche of turn-of-the-millennium urban West Africa. ‘The Blight’, an introspective of contemporary sensibilities, tackles the burning taboos of sexuality, politics, religion, education, tribe, pan-Africanism, corruption, class, sexual repression and wealth from a humorous and original, yet lucid point of view. Ansong wishes to die so he can regain his soul; Larepoh desires new breasts so she can ‘live’; Valentin needs to steal so he can become honest; Doc’s yearning is to cheat so she can taste love; and, Sgt. Tackey dreams of achieving recognition by any means necessary so he may gain the respect of his unfaithful wife. ‘The Blight’ is about the broken lives of these characters, humorous from a distance, but heartrending close-up.