Zalāl wa-'azahār: Arabic 2016

Ben Okry was nineteen years old when he wrote his first novels - Flowers and Shadows - in Lagos. It portrays the deadly effects of a generation that finds itself on the next generation. Jonan Okoy, a tough businessman, has been corrupted by ambition and found that his old sins cast a shadow over him. But at the tragic climax of this important novel, the whole effect of these sins comes in the form of hopes and dreams that weigh on his only son - the ideal Jiffey. In any case, the circle of difficult possibilities for optimism and love widens. Flowers and shadows are a modern African climate of the eloquent transition story. A distinctive novel clearly proclaims the appropriation of wealth over poverty. It is a wealth that ultimately brings nothing but misery and corruption. The distinguishing feature of this novel is the author's confidence in his touch, which treats the events and the characters. His language also reflects the serenity of his listening to the rhythm of speech, which draws inspiration from his own culture to give it to the other. It speaks elegantly and smoothly to an entire generation.