| MAMA DUDU by Meja Mwangi |
| HM Books |
| HM Productions Intl. All Rights Reserved |
| copyright 2008 by HM Entertainment Inc. |
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Mama Dudu
| The sun had finally risen, scattering the cold haze and bringing with it an air of irrational optimism, an unreasonable expectation. ‘You know,’ the giant said, pointing at the barrier with his silver-tipped baton, ‘In the old days this place was full of strange people.’ He had stepped out of his office at nine o’clock sharp as promised, dressed incongruously in white shorts and shirt, and his dreadlocks tucked under an official cap with a shiny badge that identified him as an officer of the customs and exercise department of the Government of Tanzania. He had proceeded to raise a tattered flag on a mast in front of his office hut, saluted smartly and, only then, turned and approached the travellers’ vehicle. His name was Bwana Fadhili, he had told them, but they were free to call him Mister Customs or Bwana Forodha in Kiswahili as other travellers had before they were all lured away by the new crossing at Namanga. ‘Many travellers came here in the old days,’ he informed them. ‘Some going north, some going south, and some going nowhere; just helping stuff across my border.’ But no one came this way anymore, he revealed, no one except hardcore smugglers. Even those were having second thoughts after he caught two of them sneaking past his post with gemstones stolen from the diamond mines at Mwadui. ‘They are buried over there,’ he said, pointing to a gnarled tree about two hundred yards away, ‘where they fell trying to dodge my bullets.’ Two piles of rocks marked the smugglers’ final resting place. He let Ruben contemplate the sight and consider whether it was worthwhile trying to outwit him. Then he cleared his throat loudly and said, officiously, ‘Your passports, please.’ |
| ISBN 978-1-84728-468-6 |
| Mama Dudu hm books, 2007 315 pgs |
| Mama Dudu by Meja Mwangi |
| The story begins with the arrival of a white couple at a remote and crumbling border crossing in the African bush. When they try to pass a day-old, black baby as theirs, the border guard smells a crime. He becomes more suspicious when they fail to pinpoint the location of the Bush Hospital, where they claim their baby was born, or produce documents to support their story. While they wait for the police to investigate, the border guard extends traditional hospitality to the travellers and he and Ruben, the white man claiming to be the natural father of a black baby, forge a friendship bordering on brotherhood – well, almost. ... well-written and entertaining. THE READER. |
| A humorous clash of cultures, egos and purposes. - The Reader |