The Seasons of Beento Blackbird by Akosua Busia

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Double Helping of Love

Love means many things to me.  For me love is building one more project for her when he really doesn't want to.  Love is getting the stains out of his shirts when he doesn’t even notice them.  Love is wanting to spend time together doing the little things like running errands.  And for me, love is fidelity, being faithful and true to the one person you love.  I realize though, that’s not the case for everyone.

 The Seasons of Beento Blackbird by Akosua Busia is about a man who gets a double helping of love. He has two wives, each of which he loves in a different way.  His first wife lives in the Caribbean, the second one lives in Ghana.  Solomon divides his time spending winters on a beautiful island with Miriam, his first and older wife, summers with the younger Ashia in Ghana, and the remaining time in New York where he works as a children’s book writer under the pseudonym Beento Blackbird. Both women are in agreement with the arrangement, though maybe not so wholeheartedly.  It's complicated.
This book sparked one of the livelier discussions at my book club.  The Seasons of Beento Blackbird got stronger mixed reviews than other books we have read.  I really, really liked it.  You could say I loved it. For me it was right up there with Water for Elephants and The Help.  I loved the exotic locales, the unique story, and I really liked that charming bigamist Solomon (though for the record, I’m not a fan of bigamy or cheating). I thought Solomon truly loved both Miriam and Ashia.  Others in the book club weren’t as easily captivated by Solomon.  They didn’t care for his philandering ways and the fact that his selfishness put everyone in a difficult position.  The book begs the question, can people truly give their hearts two different people at the same time?  Were we mean to be monogamous or is it that we just haven’t learned to “share”?

Moral questions aside, this book is written with an enchanting writing style that is definitely worthwhile. 

Other great love stories worth considering:
Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell 
http://readinginthegarden.blogspot.com/2013/01/gone-with-wind-by-margaret-mitchell.html

 Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
http://readinginthegarden.blogspot.com/2013/01/water-for-elephants-by-sara-gruen.html

Happy Reading,
Annette



Comments

Mutteld said…
I am with Annette, love is all the little things she mentioned. Don't get me wrong, it is nice to receive flowers, chocolate etc. But when it comes right down to it, it is all the little things partners do for each other and again having a partner that makes you laugh is priceless.
February 13, 2013 at 9:35 AM
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