Reviews

While the Tanzanian film industry has offered different portrayals of Tanzanian womanhood over the years, there is still a general lack of curiosity about contemporary stories. What it currently means to be a woman in Dar, the expectations (those you have of yourself and those put upon you), and the way they shape our lives has barely been explored. And often the exploration has not been told with the specificity that would make audiences feel like their stories have been pulled from memory, before being stretched out on the big screen.

The genre of romance is one of the most enduring in the literary world. It’s conventions-that date back to its conception are just as old. A few books down any list will illuminate the formula: meet-cute, bubbling tension that’s often accompanied by some sort of denial, acceptance, conflict, and finally reconciliation. Sometimes bits are rearranged and adjusted to fit the author’s choices, but most of it is left intact. As old as genre, is its singular representation of the type of person who gets to go through this rollercoaster of love and desire- from which the world has only recently awoken. “…this should be obvious,” Sareeta Domingo writes, “but-human beings of all kinds fall in love, and have desire and heartache, and heartbreak.”

As far as opening lines go, “Elikem married me in absentia” is about the best way to rouse curiosity. There are fewer ways to command your reader’s attention than to reveal the heart of the plot in the very beginning, and then let it masterfully unravel in every direction.

Talia Hibbert’s Brown sister trilogy is a delightful smorgasbord of varying characters. Each with their worlds and personalities curated so specifically, as to make those with similar quirks feel uncanny about their lives splayed out on the page. There’s Chloe, a chronically ill web designer obsessed with lists; Danika, a bisexual academic averse to romance; and Eve, a chaotic ball of sunshine on the autistic spectrum, with a great love for music. Representation matters, sure, but feeling seen? That’s the real game-changer. Romance has the gift of engaging in both the specifics as well as the universal truth that at the end of the day, we all want to be loved. In exploring this truth through characters made so precisely and carefully, she offers us the best of both worlds.

Rema arrived on the scene by way of a self-titled EP released in March 2019, and by the end of that year the Mavin Records signee was being heralded as leading a new generation of afrobeats artists. Since this acclaim the young artist has received even more praise with even heftier bangers like Woman, enjoyed collaborations with heavy hitters like Tiwa Savage (as well as been teased to collaborate with the likes of Lil Nas X and Drake), all while amassing a global fanbase. The road leading to his debut album has been paved with so much promise that to declare it much anticipated might be an understatement.

The emotional rollercoaster of having to constantly mend the various parts of your life back together becomes increasingly familiar in your 20s. In Liv Little’s debut novel Rosewater, we bear witness to 28-year-old Elsie Macintosh stitching (and restitching) her life back together time and time again, all while grappling with the idea of home. The novel begins with Elsie getting evicted from her house, and proceeds to slowly reveal the other ways in which she yearns for a safe landing place. Through this yearning and the way it shows up in Elsie’s relationships, Liv Little is able to illustrate the way intimacy, tenderness and love is the necessary grout that moulds our existence together.

In the second release from the Small Axe compilation, Lovers Rock, McQueen abandons a heavily plot-driven production and instead leans into the slice-of-life sensibilities to create a stunning evocation of a Saturday Blues Night. Set almost entirely at a party for the duration of a night, Lovers Rock weaves together the multiple themes and stories of West Indians in London, as told by a vibrant house party.

Amaarae’s new release Fountain Baby explores the full spectrum of desire. The world she builds through the record is that of a woman who takes pleasure and playfulness very seriously, whilst being aware that overindulgence comes at a cost. Fountain Baby is erotic, bitter, cocky, and divine all at once. She wants and wants some more, but not without recognising that it’s the excess that could be her undoing.