So with efforts to focus on a more upbeat and light-hearted read I turned to a book I’ve been wanting to read for a while now, Marguerite Abouet, Clement Oubrerie and Helge Dasher’s Aya: Life in Yop City.
Aya in Yop City is set in 1979 during a time of relative peace in the Ivory Coast. Aya is heading into university striving for a better future to try and become a doctor. Her two friends Adjoua and Bintou are a little more concerned with boys and succeed in getting themselves into constant trouble. They struggle with university, complex relationships between their parents, boys, pregnancy, and working out how to earn a living.
Many of the stories are fun and show the daily life of people in Yopougon (Yop City). There is some great banter between some of the characters and funny little sayings that pop up.
It is a fun read and the pictures are great. But there is a seriousness behind the stories. Teenage pregnancy, polygamy, expectations around gender roles, homosexuality, hopes for a better life overseas only to realise how much needs to be sacrificed.
I’m not sure if it was entirely the uplifting story that I was after but I’d definitely recommend the books. At the end you get some cute little additions – how to tie fabric, how to cook some traditional Ivory Coast meals, and how to butt shake.
A Journey Through the 55 countries of Africa through Books 