Vassanji, M. G

Oxford. 1991. Heinemann. 1st African Writers Series Edition. Very Good in Wrappers. 0435905856. African Writers Series. 144 pages. paperback. Cover illustration by Keith Pointing. keywords: Literature Tanzania Africa . FROM THE PUBLISHER - With delicate strokes, M.G. Vassanji brings alive the characters who live and work in the shops and tenements of Uhuru Street: Roshan Mattress, so called because of her free and easy ways; baby, the blubbery-fat daughter of a grocer, indulged but amiable; Ahmed, the street-wise orphan fighting for survival though like most bullies ‘an expert at marbles'. Even the street itself breathes life and symbolises the comradeship of this immigrant community. The stories take us from the late colonial days of sheltered innocence in the 1950s through to the 1980s when many of the characters have moved away from the confines of their community only to find that hopes and aspirations are displaced by harsh realities, and the spirit that was Uhuru Street is no more than a nostalgic dream. In this unique collection of short stories from the Commonwealth prize-winning author of The Gunny Sack and No New Land, the curtain is drawn back to reveal life in the Asian community in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania - its customs, traditions and prejuduces. inventory #17933 ISBN: 0435905856.