REVIEWS
They say:“ If you can get some perspective, you see what a monumental achievement it is for him to have done this. It is a phenomenal achievement from Chris.”
Sir Chris Hoy
On La Toussuire, Froome went away from Wiggins, but was quickly told to come back to his leader. This ignominiously highlighted, not only the difference in class between Froome and Wiggins, but the ineptitude and unsuitability of Sky’ s team orders.
“ I was coming to the conclusion that if you were riding out to battle through early-morning mists with your standards flying high, Sir Bradley Wiggins was a man you would want at your side,” says Froome,“ Because after lunch he just might not be bothered.”
Wiggins won the Tour, Froome was labelled a super-domestique, but it wasn’ t fair. Froome had been the stronger, the fitter, the better. And he had lost because the team wasn’ t built around him.
Froome’ s worth was proved later on though – when he took the 2013 Tour with an impeccable ride. His mountain top annihilation of the opposition on the infamous Mount Ventoux will go down in cycling folklore. It was presage of things to come.
In 2015 he became the first Briton to win the Tour twice, when winning his second Yellow Jersey, despite the protestations of a small section of cycling fans- and the media. The Press continued to plague his victories with unfounded accusations of doping.
Froome’ s defiant coda was:“ You think I’ m guilty. Can you prove it? No! I know I’ m clean. Can I prove it? No! You heard it all before from Lance Armstrong. Well, I’ m not Lance Armstrong. You won’ t get fooled again! Not by me you won’ t, ever.”
On winning the Tour in 2013 Froome said:“ This is one Yellow Jersey that will stand the test of time.” And so will his dedication, resilience and bravery.
As a kid Chris Froome rode through the Kenyan bush joyfully as a carefree spirit. Cometh the hour, cometh the hero. In his third age, he rode to become a Yellow Jersey man. n
Blackass
By A. Igoni Barrett Chatto & Windus( 2015) & Graywolf Press( 2016)
By Tomi Olugbemi A white man roves through the systemised chaos of Mainland Lagos as he hurries to a Monday morning interview. He is met by gaping children and beggars, as well as suspicious roadside hawkers and other victims of Lagos traffic.
He carries the name and identity of a Kalabari Nigerian man but his skin says otherwise. His nipples – barely visible through a sweat-soaked shirt – are pink, eyes green and his hair is red. He scampers on foot for an interview but he is not who he was yesterday. He is no longer black. This is how Igoni Barrett introduces Blackass to the reader.
Furo Wariboko, 33 years old, awakens to a shocking image in the mirror. He spends the next few days dodging his own reflection. His new physical identity brings him new employment, solicitation from a prostitute, and an almost-did-not-happen venereal intercourse with a woman he barely knows. He is living vicariously, another version of himself.
“ A white man in Lagos has no voice louder than the dollar sign branded on his forehead,” is a statement that aptly describes why non-blacks in Lagos – especially expatriates – are often afforded the red carpet respect of having a fat pocket.
Blackass deliberates on race and culture without preaching a social or political message. These issues are subservient to the story, race one of many seasonings in the soup in which the protagonist finds himself.
The writer, when not repetitive with metaphor and anecdote about the hustle and bustle, of Lagos, writes in easily ingested prose that appeases the imagination also of non-Nigerians, and even non-Africans. His style allows for humour without losing the essence of the basic premise. Igoni Barrett utilises his actual twitter handle to sway the reader from reading fiction to something autobiographical, in a way that is pleasantly confusing. His use of Nigerian pidgin reflects a fundamental component of communication in Lagos.
Furo’ s new skin tone takes him around the Lagos he knows – the muddiness, abject poverty, of the countless gated communities, the sublime affluence of Island Lagos.
And through the dauntless bribery of government officials, cheeriness and craziness of civilians, day and night. While the book premises on Furo’ s race change, it’ s a more subtle ode to Lagos.
Blood on Snow by Jo Nesbo Harvill Secker, 2015
By Caspian Challis The internationally acclaimed thriller writer takes us on a dark journey through the underbelly of Norwegian noir. But his latest is nothing like his Harry Hole series.
Set in the capital Oslo, this dark, twisted thriller is seen through the eyes of an average, all-round regular guy Olav, a“ fixer” for a powerful crime boss.
The“ fixing” that is Olav’ s speciality is killing to order, but he finds the life of a hit man can be complicated when personal feelings intrude.
The book’ s unique feature is its sympathetic protagonist. Most anti-heroes will be dark, broody,“ cool” characters with a badass origin story. You know the kind; your Rorschachs from Watchmen, Agent 47s in the Hitman series.
Olav is a much more ambiguous character. Clearly intelligent who after failing as a pimp, falls in with sex and heroin kingpin Daniel Hoffman. Could anyone become a hired killer? Nesbo shows you don’ t need a cool back-story or have a mental problem, to kill. Any guy in the street could be the killer in the shadows.
This is a clinical look into the psyche of people who can live with themselves while committing such atrocities. A true meditation on the existential counterpoint between life and death.
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