
ODUFA BY OTHUKE OMINIABOHS – OJUJU’S TAKE
Odufa is definitely not your typical love story. It is a graphic journey showcasing the giddy emotional heights and despairing lows of a young heart in search of acceptance and hope.
At the tender age of 21, Anthony Mukoro is told by his doctor that he has a low probability of ever fathering children due to complications arising from untreated hypertension. The young man becomes disillusioned and ends up seeking solace in the arms of Odufa, a beautiful girl with a troubled past. Thus began a frenetic tango spanning three cities and phases.
‘Friends’ chronicles the tentative exploratory exchanges, ‘Lovers’ details the joy of acceptance and the discoveries of blossoming romance while ‘Strangers’ describes the miserable parting of ways.
The book paints a vivid picture that makes loving with such intensity both desirable and scary in turns. It also resonates the most important lesson of all; that love alone, no matter how deep and well intentioned, is usually never enough to create a successful union.
The reader races through Odufa with a sense of expectation, an eagerness to discover the ‘happily ever after’, but is left with a deep sadness at the way the story eventually plays out. Joy, anger, laughter, pity, and even disbelief jump out of the pages at different places. One can be forgiven for feeling this is not how the story is supposed to end.
Personally, I feel the need for closure. Odufa’s dark past is not yet revealed; just like we never got to know the actual reason she went ‘rogue’ after initially warming our hearts with her altruism even in the face of huge odds. Was it all part of a plot, did she have an ulterior motive for her sacrifice or was she was just a victim of circumstances beyond her control?
Odufa is a well thought out and beautifully packaged story, one which is totally relatable, and a recommended read for anybody that is old and human enough to be touched and affected by the idiosyncrasies of love.