Genre: Children’s literature

Titles: Sox Goes To School with Daara; Sports Day; Daara’s New School; Sox Goes Away & Only Yesterday

Publisher: Nelson Publishers

Reviewer: Olutayo Irantiola

Children’s literature is one of those literary pieces that takes one aback. It can be a skilful, dramatic return to one’s childhood with details of how life was at that time. In the same manner, writers of children’s literature patiently reflect on what distinguishes their age from the current age. O’Yemi Afolabi has painstakingly documented a lovely children’s story in short stories of different titles that make up a series.

One of the stories, titled “Sox Goes to School with Daara”, narrates Daara Ariyibi taking a cat to school. On this fateful day, she woke up crossed with everyone for not coming to wake her up early. Daara loved Sox, one of the kittens she named after Fifi, the mother cat, that gave birth to four kittens. Daara hurriedly picked her bag from the study and left for school. She unzipped her bag when she got to school and Sox popped out. This created a scene in the school. Daara’s friend, Naia, was implored not to mention it to her mum. It was a playful ride for the children back to their various homes as they played with the cat. Daara got home and implored her nanny, Aunty Sabrina, not to mention it to her Mum.

Every parent would appreciate this story because it reflects children’s playfulness, which can be expensive later. Parents need not leave children to themselves, especially when they are still in primary school.

In the story tilted “Sports Day” this is an online of one of the days that children look forward to in an academic year. It is a season when children are engaged outside the classroom. This is one of the ways of building their confidence, developing their competitive spirit, and bragging about their parents’ abilities. It was gratifying for Daara and her mum as they both won medals. Daara won medals in the 100-meter race and the long jump, while her Mum won the parents’ race respectively. It was at this stage that the headmistress taunted the family about how fast they ran, and so did their pets.

This story ran into another title, “Sox Goes Away” that is the point in which a parent told Daara’s mother about the day in which Sox Goes to School with Daara. On Saturday, Daara’s mum sends Daara to her cousins. Thereafter, she informed Aunty Sabrina of different people would come pick all the cats. When Daara returned at 4pm, the house was too silent for her and she discovered that the cats are no more in the house. This implies that she is very observant.

Daara was scolded for not greeting her mother first when she returned. I must say that this culture is gradually disappearing, and it must be revived. The doling out of the cats was to punish Daara for keeping a secret from her mum.

Another story titled “Daara’s New School” narrates Daara’s new school. As for me, I call it the Lagos story. Prominent streets on the Island were mentioned. Visualising the environment for anyone who is used to Lagos Island would be easy. The named streets were Raymond Njoku Street, where Daara’s house resides; Maitama Street, where her school is located; Cowrie Creek, which separates Ikoyi and Victoria Island; Ikoyi has three zones: Obalende, Old Ikoyi and South West Ikoyi. Other places are Falomo Shopping Complex, Shoprite in Lekki, Banana Island, and Bourdillon Road.

After dinner, the new school was introduced to Daara by offering her the new school uniform. Daara objected to resuming at the new school, but when she resumed, she met the children of her mum’s friend. This was a big consolation for her, and she found the school a place of comfort.

The gradually disappearing Yoruba language is seen in this text. On page 4, Daara greets her mother in Yoruba while the mother responds in English. This depicts the elite’s failure to give cultural education to their children. There should be a change of attitude to this trend if we want the Yoruba language to survive.

The book also used Pidgin as the English of the semi-educated domestic staff.

On page 5, “E taste well, well o. Daara self like am.” Also on page 28, “Daara na fine, fine baby”

The growth of Daara into adolescence is mentioned in “Only Yesterday”. The story is about Daara’s vacation to England and France. A caring mother who wants an all-around development for her daughter wants her to start learning how to cook by being with Aunty Sabrina in the kitchen; she wants her to start washing her clothes. A listening Mum has the opportunity of knowing all that is happening to her daughter, as such; Daara told her “mosquitoes had bitten her down here. I don’t know how they got into my panties,” page 30. That was the breakout of menstruation and also the protrusion of her breast.

At this point in the writing, we had a translation of a Yoruba proverb into English: ” The pot that wants to consume chillies should be prepared to have its bottom fired,” which is “Ikoko ti yoo jata, idi re a gbona.” However, I am not comfortable with the absence of a father in the Daara series. A properly raised child needs the presence of a father.

This series is well-woven and structured. Although there is no place where the novellas were labelled, they follow in a sequence. Also, these novellas have independent themes that speak to the heart of a child. Aunty O’Yemi Afolabi has crafted an incisive series that can be used for pedagogy in primary school.