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A Bit of Difference
At thirty-nine, Deola Bello, a Nigerian expatriate in London, is dissatisfied with being single and working overseas. Deola works as a financial reviewer for an international charity. When her job takes her back to Nigeria in time for her father’s five-year memorial service, she finds herself turning her scrutiny inward. In Nigeria, Deola encounters changes in her family and in the urban landscape of her home, and new acquaintances who offer unexpected possibilities. Deola’s journey is as much about evading others� expectations to get to the heart of her frustration as it is about exposing the differences between foreign images of Africa and the realities of contemporary Nigerian life.
222 pages, Paperback
First published August 25, 2012
31 people are currently reading
810 people want to read
About the author
Sefi Atta
22Ìýbooks181ÌýfollowersSefi Atta was born 1964 in Lagos, Nigeria. She was educated there, in England and the United States. Her father Abdul-Aziz Atta was the Secretary to Federal Government and Head of the Civil Service until his death in 1972, and she was raised by her mother Iyabo Atta.
A former chartered accountant and CPA, she is a graduate of the creative writing program at Antioch University, Los Angeles. Her short stories have appeared in journals like Los Angeles Review and Mississipi Review and have won prizes from Zoetrope and Red Hen Press. Her radio plays have been broadcast by the BBC. She is the winner of PEN International's 2004/2005 David TK Wong Prize and in 2006, her debut novel Everything Good Will Come was awarded the inaugural Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa.
Her short story collection, Lawless, received the 2009 Noma Award For Publishing in Africa. Lawless is published in the US and UK as News From Home.
She lives in Mississippi with her husband Gboyega Ransome-Kuti, a medical doctor, and their daughter, Temi.
A former chartered accountant and CPA, she is a graduate of the creative writing program at Antioch University, Los Angeles. Her short stories have appeared in journals like Los Angeles Review and Mississipi Review and have won prizes from Zoetrope and Red Hen Press. Her radio plays have been broadcast by the BBC. She is the winner of PEN International's 2004/2005 David TK Wong Prize and in 2006, her debut novel Everything Good Will Come was awarded the inaugural Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa.
Her short story collection, Lawless, received the 2009 Noma Award For Publishing in Africa. Lawless is published in the US and UK as News From Home.
She lives in Mississippi with her husband Gboyega Ransome-Kuti, a medical doctor, and their daughter, Temi.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
February 25, 2022
This novel is set in Lagos, London and Abuja. The central character is Deola, she is 39 and single working for an international charity in London. The novel has a strong cast of characters and Atta is very good at writing interesting, flawed and human people, even if they only have walk on parts. The central character, Deola, is well drawn and her flaws are as endearing as her strengths. The plot revolves around Deola’s discontent with her job, her varied and chaotic family, a man she meets in Nigeria and leads to a situation where she has to make decisions. She also has to contend with her mother’s constant reminders about her biological clock and the need to get married. Deola has her own thoughts about this;
“Lanre once called her a manhater, but she genuinely liked men. Her friction with Lanre began when he sensed she no longer looked up to him, but it wasn’t personal. It was only a part of [his] boyishness she stopped admiring. She never favoured girls. She just gave the impression she did. It was clear when she reached puberty that she had to choose what team she was on� It wasn’t that her team always played fair, but the older she got, the less tolerant she was of [men]’s unfair tactics. Was it simply their way? Or did the rules condone them? She didn’t know but she had to develop her own method of defence fast, especially as her team seemed less unified and prepared,�
There are interesting contrasts between the Nigerian community in London and in Lagos. Atta also makes some perceptive comments about the charity sector. She is in an interview in a room full of souvenirs and carvings:
“she couldn’t stop looking at them during the interview and she was not sure if they calmed her down or put her off. Even back then she knew Graham would prefer the most European of African countries, like South Africa and Kenya. She knew she would stand a better chance with him if she presented herself as an African in need.�
The time is the early 2000s and the novel takes place over several months. Identity is a strong theme and in many ways this can be compared with Americanah, although it isn’t as good as Americanah. Nevertheless it is worth reading.
There is a strong musical undercurrent and Atta considers herself an Afrobeat author. There are dialogues about African and African diasporic music. Atta also writes strong female characters and themes such as sexual health, mental health and marital infidelity are woven through the narrative.
“Lanre once called her a manhater, but she genuinely liked men. Her friction with Lanre began when he sensed she no longer looked up to him, but it wasn’t personal. It was only a part of [his] boyishness she stopped admiring. She never favoured girls. She just gave the impression she did. It was clear when she reached puberty that she had to choose what team she was on� It wasn’t that her team always played fair, but the older she got, the less tolerant she was of [men]’s unfair tactics. Was it simply their way? Or did the rules condone them? She didn’t know but she had to develop her own method of defence fast, especially as her team seemed less unified and prepared,�
There are interesting contrasts between the Nigerian community in London and in Lagos. Atta also makes some perceptive comments about the charity sector. She is in an interview in a room full of souvenirs and carvings:
“she couldn’t stop looking at them during the interview and she was not sure if they calmed her down or put her off. Even back then she knew Graham would prefer the most European of African countries, like South Africa and Kenya. She knew she would stand a better chance with him if she presented herself as an African in need.�
The time is the early 2000s and the novel takes place over several months. Identity is a strong theme and in many ways this can be compared with Americanah, although it isn’t as good as Americanah. Nevertheless it is worth reading.
There is a strong musical undercurrent and Atta considers herself an Afrobeat author. There are dialogues about African and African diasporic music. Atta also writes strong female characters and themes such as sexual health, mental health and marital infidelity are woven through the narrative.
August 18, 2018
This was an intense and riveting read for me. I have read and enjoyed Sefi Atta's works in the past and so I was excited that she had new work. Essentially this book features Adeola "Deola- pronounced Day-ola" Bello a Nigerian expatriate living and working in London. She is thirty-nine years old, single, childless, and anxious about the popular global perception of Nigeria because it cannot quite capture what it really means to be any one of the the multi-layered cultural and spiritual characters featured in her world.
Deola is an independent, lonesome, and perceptive person whose voice feels naturally trustworthy. The narrative is very self-observant and self-critiquing in terms of Deola as an individual and as a Nigerian. Her job as a financial reviewer for an international charity sends her traveling from London to Atlanta, GA in the U.S. to Nigeria---where unbeknownst to her employers she will attend the 5-year Memorial for her father before returning to London.
Sefi Atta's prose is densely packed; she does a fine job of being a storyteller who reveals the complexities of contemporary people without contriving to do so. Early in the book I enjoyed this passage: "Her TV remote is on the carpet by a glass with orange juice sediment and a side plate with the remnants of her bacon sandwich. She is relishing the taste of acid and salt in her mouth when her doorbell rings. The ding is loud, but the dong is broken and drops like a thud." The cast of characters is diverse, and there are a lot of London and Nigerian references that I wish I had better knowledge of.
My favorite scene in this book takes place at Deola's family home following the church service memorializing her father. It illustrates the way family (---especially mothers, aunts, cousins, and sisters) and extended family communicate, judge, pressure, enjoy, tolerate, complicate, support, stifle, and care for each other. Another significant and tensely described episode has to do with being tested for HIV at a clinic that provides same-day results by appointment only. Don't think that this book hasn't got a sense of humor as well---you are sure to laugh out loud as I did. Elsewhere...call me a romantic---"Wale" is one of my favorite characters.
Deola is an independent, lonesome, and perceptive person whose voice feels naturally trustworthy. The narrative is very self-observant and self-critiquing in terms of Deola as an individual and as a Nigerian. Her job as a financial reviewer for an international charity sends her traveling from London to Atlanta, GA in the U.S. to Nigeria---where unbeknownst to her employers she will attend the 5-year Memorial for her father before returning to London.
Sefi Atta's prose is densely packed; she does a fine job of being a storyteller who reveals the complexities of contemporary people without contriving to do so. Early in the book I enjoyed this passage: "Her TV remote is on the carpet by a glass with orange juice sediment and a side plate with the remnants of her bacon sandwich. She is relishing the taste of acid and salt in her mouth when her doorbell rings. The ding is loud, but the dong is broken and drops like a thud." The cast of characters is diverse, and there are a lot of London and Nigerian references that I wish I had better knowledge of.
My favorite scene in this book takes place at Deola's family home following the church service memorializing her father. It illustrates the way family (---especially mothers, aunts, cousins, and sisters) and extended family communicate, judge, pressure, enjoy, tolerate, complicate, support, stifle, and care for each other. Another significant and tensely described episode has to do with being tested for HIV at a clinic that provides same-day results by appointment only. Don't think that this book hasn't got a sense of humor as well---you are sure to laugh out loud as I did. Elsewhere...call me a romantic---"Wale" is one of my favorite characters.
March 6, 2018
just felt this novel just didn't do it for me as took ages to really get going
June 6, 2015
I really struggled with this book and the ending was a big disappointment. I only finished it because I don't like giving up on books. It isn't my usual choice of book to be fair and I can see that other readers loved it. Just not for me.
March 2, 2019
I haven’t read a more satisfying novel in such a long while. The plot is deceptively simple: a Nigerian woman who has been living and working in London for years decides to go home to Lagos for a business trip. She is 39 and lonely; she hasn’t met a man that she has felt attracted to in a very long time. At her hotel in Lagos, she meets Wale � a man attractive enough to qualify for a one-night stand. She sleeps with him. The one-night stand is not without its consequences. This is the story at the heart of the book. But Sefi Atta is preoccupied with exploring the condition of the Nigerian immigrant or the Nigerian in London. She tells Deola’s story in wonderful minute detail. We experience her relationship with her family, her friends, and her work colleagues. We know intimately her thoughts and her feelings and we can see her world too � Atta’s descriptions are simple and clean, but sharply evocative. What’s more, her use of dialogue is fantastic. Several times Deola communicates with friends and family over the phone, but each time the conversations are immediate and believable. Even without conversational markers such as “he said� or “she said,� the reader knows exactly who is speaking and when because Atta’s voice details are distinctive. Sometimes I felt as though I could hear the characters speaking directly to me.
Reading Atta has been a miraculous experience. In my Creative Writing classes, I have been encouraged to show and not tell. Exposition is for journalists. The burden for a fiction writer is to describe a plausible world and to do it precisely. Prose that is dry and sparse is prose to be admired; it has a sort of angular beauty. But Atta manages to blur the distinction between “description� and “exposition.� She writes like a storyteller who does not want to forget a single detail, even if, sometimes, the details or the life histories of certain characters have to be told in short-form:
“Aunty Bisi is her mother’s younger sister, who spent holidays in their house when she was in university. The guestroom was hers. She taught Deola and her siblings songs like ‘Ruby Tuesday.� Once in a while she saved them from punishments. Her mother paid for Aunty Bisi’s education and training as a chartered secretary. Aunty Bisi must have felt indebted from then on because she was always around, helping with Christmas parties, weddings, and other family functions.�
This is a whole life, compressed; this is blatant “telling.� And yet it works. Atta’s writing/ storytelling seems to me completely unselfconscious � almost intuitive � and so I have enjoyed it thoroughly. It has given me license to start to write the way she does � to simply tell a story in a way that feels natural and damn the technicalities.
I am going to miss the characters in this book. And I am impatient even now to read more of Sefi Atta’s work, but I am sure also that this is a book that I will return to in the future. It is too rich to read only once.
Re-readable.
I am officially a Sefi Atta fan.
Reading Atta has been a miraculous experience. In my Creative Writing classes, I have been encouraged to show and not tell. Exposition is for journalists. The burden for a fiction writer is to describe a plausible world and to do it precisely. Prose that is dry and sparse is prose to be admired; it has a sort of angular beauty. But Atta manages to blur the distinction between “description� and “exposition.� She writes like a storyteller who does not want to forget a single detail, even if, sometimes, the details or the life histories of certain characters have to be told in short-form:
“Aunty Bisi is her mother’s younger sister, who spent holidays in their house when she was in university. The guestroom was hers. She taught Deola and her siblings songs like ‘Ruby Tuesday.� Once in a while she saved them from punishments. Her mother paid for Aunty Bisi’s education and training as a chartered secretary. Aunty Bisi must have felt indebted from then on because she was always around, helping with Christmas parties, weddings, and other family functions.�
This is a whole life, compressed; this is blatant “telling.� And yet it works. Atta’s writing/ storytelling seems to me completely unselfconscious � almost intuitive � and so I have enjoyed it thoroughly. It has given me license to start to write the way she does � to simply tell a story in a way that feels natural and damn the technicalities.
I am going to miss the characters in this book. And I am impatient even now to read more of Sefi Atta’s work, but I am sure also that this is a book that I will return to in the future. It is too rich to read only once.
Re-readable.
I am officially a Sefi Atta fan.
February 27, 2020
Della is an independent-minded single woman, a character with strong views reminiscent of Austen’s heroines, adapting to life in two very different cities - London and Lagos - and feeling like a fish out of water in each. The pressure she feels to conform to societal expectations, i.e. whether to marry well and raise children or to live independently reflects the common reality of most women’s lives wherever they are in the modern cosmopolitan world.
Greatly entertaining!
Greatly entertaining!
August 5, 2018
A sharp and well realised story about the immigrant experience
March 6, 2023
She finds African literature preoccupied with politics in a way she never was. The fact was she accepted the civil war was the only reasonable option for Nigeria, and from then on witnessed a parade of military and civilian rulers: cowards, reformers, sexual deviants and murderous juju disciples. They were like the stars at night to her. She couldn't deny their significance, but she was hardly dazzled by them. There were times she thought she ought to take more interest in what they were doing, but the death toll from the civil war and years of political unrest combined could not add up to the number of casualties from AIDS, so perhaps her concerns over what was happening between chicks and guys were not so misplaced after all.
- A bit of difference by Sefi Atta
.
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Honestly, i was bored. It has a great start - Deola Bello, An International NGO financial executive working in London , Travelling to Abuja and Lagos for work purpose and at the same time, reconnecting with her family members. She has a few eccentric friends - Subu (a passionate yet larger than life christian girl) , Bandele (A snobbish writer who’s insisted that his writing beyond the African literary) and Helen (A Mixed girl that tried so hard to hide that she is privileged). After 80 pages, i still dont know what is the direction of this novel. Then, i passed page 250, i figured i just reading it for the sake of finishing it. Sure, the author did well in portraying ‘what is Nigeria� via Nigerian Lenses - you can see the honest discussion that Deola has with her friends, acquaintances and even her dysfunctional family members. Be it about tribal laws, the state of economy, Aid versus trade, or even family gossips of whose cheating, whose getting pregnant or whose leaving the country. BUT, that was about 30% from the book. NGO works that Deola currently work with did help in demonstrating how International NGO works to secure the funding and building the connection . Unfortunately, it was also short lived. Sefi Atta could’ve established Wale and Deola relationship but the spark between them went out so quick. After she decided to keep his baby and be with him, i was like ‘Really? Deola, you choose motherhood at the end of the day? . I usually took 2 days to finish 1 book but this alone, taken me 4 days just to finish it. I kept stalling as i am dreading to finish it. Overall, 2 stars from me. Deola is a dull character and the story did not even help to let her shine. I am not sure whether i wanted to read other Sefi Atta’s works.
- A bit of difference by Sefi Atta
.
.
Honestly, i was bored. It has a great start - Deola Bello, An International NGO financial executive working in London , Travelling to Abuja and Lagos for work purpose and at the same time, reconnecting with her family members. She has a few eccentric friends - Subu (a passionate yet larger than life christian girl) , Bandele (A snobbish writer who’s insisted that his writing beyond the African literary) and Helen (A Mixed girl that tried so hard to hide that she is privileged). After 80 pages, i still dont know what is the direction of this novel. Then, i passed page 250, i figured i just reading it for the sake of finishing it. Sure, the author did well in portraying ‘what is Nigeria� via Nigerian Lenses - you can see the honest discussion that Deola has with her friends, acquaintances and even her dysfunctional family members. Be it about tribal laws, the state of economy, Aid versus trade, or even family gossips of whose cheating, whose getting pregnant or whose leaving the country. BUT, that was about 30% from the book. NGO works that Deola currently work with did help in demonstrating how International NGO works to secure the funding and building the connection . Unfortunately, it was also short lived. Sefi Atta could’ve established Wale and Deola relationship but the spark between them went out so quick. After she decided to keep his baby and be with him, i was like ‘Really? Deola, you choose motherhood at the end of the day? . I usually took 2 days to finish 1 book but this alone, taken me 4 days just to finish it. I kept stalling as i am dreading to finish it. Overall, 2 stars from me. Deola is a dull character and the story did not even help to let her shine. I am not sure whether i wanted to read other Sefi Atta’s works.
December 11, 2019
Sefi Atta’s A Bit of Difference is the type of book you pick up after a week of reading Paul Beatty’s The White Boy Shuffle. It gives you a similar protagonist but without the mental press-up. This is not to say that the book is vacuous; it just highlights all of the important issues in a laidback style and that is my favourite thing about it.
Deola Bello, our protagonist, is a Nigerian expatriate living and working in London while juggling life issues with the baggage of being “an almost-40 year old unmarried Nigerian woman�. Like Gunnar from The White Boy Shuffle, Deola exists in the story as more of a commentator, even in parts of the book that detailed her life in present tense. Like she was always looking into her own life and analyzing it. This wasn’t a bad thing for the story and in fact, that’s the only reason I liked Deola.
A Bit of Difference tells the story of a woman living in a contemporary world and trying to navigate its complexities; so essentially, a very relatable main character. We see this ‘navigation of complexities� in all the topics Deola broached while schooling, living, working in the UK and eventually back in Nigeria. It is the quintessence of a social commentary told in a patriotic yet open-minded way. Deola didn’t give excuses for the shortcomings of certain systems in both countries and she didn’t belittle the good either. Even while nursing her own biases, she was still able to pinpoint what the ‘ideal� should be.
All in all, while I wasn’t blown away by the book, I appreciate the simplicity of the storytelling. I kept waiting for ‘something� to happen but that ‘something� never surfaced for me; the pace of the book remained relatively the same through out. Would I be reading more books by Atta? Yes! And I do recommend this one but not as a “do-or-die� affair.
January 9, 2013
More like 2.5 stars.
Deola is a 30something single Nigerian woman living in England. She is navigating conversations and microaggressions related to race in England and dodging her mother's pressure to be married and have children in Nigeria.
I found Deola relatable in many ways, especially in regards to her work situation.
But I did not like Atta's writing. This is probably the first novel I've read that was written in 3rd person present and it was...weird. The expository writing seemed too much and sometimes unnecessary.
The cultural references were also a bit much sometimes. The novel lacked subtlety. The plot was a bit dodgy but I won't post any spoilers.
Deola is a 30something single Nigerian woman living in England. She is navigating conversations and microaggressions related to race in England and dodging her mother's pressure to be married and have children in Nigeria.
I found Deola relatable in many ways, especially in regards to her work situation.
But I did not like Atta's writing. This is probably the first novel I've read that was written in 3rd person present and it was...weird. The expository writing seemed too much and sometimes unnecessary.
The cultural references were also a bit much sometimes. The novel lacked subtlety. The plot was a bit dodgy but I won't post any spoilers.
October 30, 2012
I love this book. It especially resonates with me, since I am an African living in the US. Please read it!
April 23, 2015
Sefi Atta first caught the attention of the literary world with her award-winning story collection, "News From Home". This, her third novel, once again explores Nigerian mores and people in transit between cultures.
Deola, a 39-year-old single woman is at a crossroads in life � unfulfilled at work, based in London while pining for Lagos, and uncomfortably aware of her biological clock ticking. Despite her troubled inner life, Deola is all poise and sangfroid in public, and the writing style matches the character.
A novel devoid of histrionics, major crises and mind-bending twists is a rare beast these days. But Sefi Atta is onto something. The characters, the patois, the social interactions that touch on race, class and generational differences are all brilliantly observed and Atta’s unerring eye � and ear � are served well by her understated style.
Deola is a sympathetic heroine � smart but not too smart, and self-aware. The scenes of her at work � she appraises organizations to see whether they are worthy of charity donations � are subtly compelling, and the depictions of her relationships with friends and family are also handled with a masterly lack of sentimentality. I also enjoyed the development with the enigmatic Wale, a charming Nigerian businessman who will play a central role in Deola’s life.
Ultimately, it’s the narrative voice � calm and shrewd � that makes this novel stand out. A quiet book but a powerful one.
Deola, a 39-year-old single woman is at a crossroads in life � unfulfilled at work, based in London while pining for Lagos, and uncomfortably aware of her biological clock ticking. Despite her troubled inner life, Deola is all poise and sangfroid in public, and the writing style matches the character.
A novel devoid of histrionics, major crises and mind-bending twists is a rare beast these days. But Sefi Atta is onto something. The characters, the patois, the social interactions that touch on race, class and generational differences are all brilliantly observed and Atta’s unerring eye � and ear � are served well by her understated style.
Deola is a sympathetic heroine � smart but not too smart, and self-aware. The scenes of her at work � she appraises organizations to see whether they are worthy of charity donations � are subtly compelling, and the depictions of her relationships with friends and family are also handled with a masterly lack of sentimentality. I also enjoyed the development with the enigmatic Wale, a charming Nigerian businessman who will play a central role in Deola’s life.
Ultimately, it’s the narrative voice � calm and shrewd � that makes this novel stand out. A quiet book but a powerful one.
February 20, 2016
It was weird reading this book because I kept discovering all the ways that the character had similar traits and career trajectory to me, as well as similar insights and observations that may have also been the author's perspective. So I was caught up in the detail in a way I haven't really been with other books. I liked how the protagonist was an obviously imperfect creature, and how the book was navigating the imperfect lives and interactions of the characters. In that way, it was very human. I responded well to the protagonist's bicoastal lifestyle, which I also share, and the idea of home that constantly evades in an adopted country, even where one may have lived for a long time. For some reason, I didn't quite find a flow, and I got slightly lost in some of the details and dialogue, but overall I loved the plot, and how much emphasis and description was put on the character's professional life. The perspective was refreshing.
May 16, 2013
This novel about a woman Nigerian expatriate living in London is less about plot and more of a character and cultural study. The central character works for a global charity and the book includes a trip to Atlanta and a trip to her home for her father's 5 year memorial service; the career and two trips give the author an opportunity for commentary about the Nigerian class system, Nigerian perspectives on family, sexuality, and feminist issues, and a perspective of many charity efforts vs microcredit efforts that may allow for more genuine economic reform and progress. However, the focus of the book is on Deola and her life which keeps this interesting read a novel instead of a political tract or social commentary
April 23, 2014
Half-way through this book I was still waiting for this book to start! This book followed the story of Deola Bello who is in her late thirties, Nigerian and living in London. She works for an international aid agency and widely travels. The most significant trip to Nigeria is to coincide with the fifth anniversary of her fathers death and we are introduced to Deola's family, and she meets a man. I think to truly appreciate this book, you must be Nigerian. I was forever googling phrases like "aso ebi" and the little catchphrases she used. I fancied "a bit of a difference" which is why I picked up the book, and It was "different" but not really enjoyable. I'm sure Sefi Atta is a great writer, but maybe just a great Nigerian writer. Her writing didn't translate to me.
June 23, 2016
The writing is not really my style. A bit basic... And it sometimes reads as though the writer is rambling. The main character's travel escapades are somewhat interesting. It's not a book that I just can't seem to put down, which is disappointing.
January 17, 2019
The story is good but the story telling makes it hard to truly appreciate the story. You get interested in knowing the main characters story and how it ends but get bored along the way.
August 28, 2020
Varying culture and traditions influence the protagonist here, as we watch this young woman navigate her life. I enjoyed the characterizations but, perhaps naively, wanted more of a resolution. Even as I write this I realise that that is perhaps the point - though I think I could have let this go if there had been even a glimpse of her making any sort of assertive, selfish choice.
March 11, 2021
Sefi pays very great attention to detail. She manages to capture that aching desperation single women are forced to experience. Beautifully written.
January 18, 2019
Easy read. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
March 15, 2015
I'm a bit on the fence about this book - it's clearly trying to be a little bit of an Austen pastiche with more explicit political (as opposed to social, although I guess the distinction can be pretty false) commentary, and that Austen is mentioned fairly often in the prose is a hat-tip at the fact that all the characters are kind of Nigerian Austen-analogues - Wale, the love interest, is a widower of some means with a daughter of fourteen; the mother is a bit of a Mrs Bennet; the young adults are all Rich and Generously Spoilt; the social conventions are tipped as Clearly Ridiculous; and Deola herself is an introverted Emma who's been left on the shelf for a bit too long, like Anne from Persuasion.
And yet. The commentary is far from sparkling, the narration takes too long to unfold. Deola's narration feels a little too heavyweight with the fact that she knows her milieu is too privileged for comfort, something she tries to allay by working for a charity but which, in itself, is privileged (she got the job in the obviously competitive UK charity sector by studying at LSE and working at her father's bank for a little while), leading to lots of self-doubt, etc etc. This doesn't make it unbearably self-indulgent (some other review: "You might think it's self-indulgent, but it's actually great!" which means that it is self-indulgent) by itself, but unbearably plodding. The plot only really picks up in the second half, after her dad's memorial when Deola's hand is forced into action by and gets her happy ending after all. I definitely enjoyed the second half of the novel, with all the characters being determined to Do The Right Thing and coming to like each other after all, more than the first half, which did read as a tiny fog of self-pity.
And yet. The commentary is far from sparkling, the narration takes too long to unfold. Deola's narration feels a little too heavyweight with the fact that she knows her milieu is too privileged for comfort, something she tries to allay by working for a charity but which, in itself, is privileged (she got the job in the obviously competitive UK charity sector by studying at LSE and working at her father's bank for a little while), leading to lots of self-doubt, etc etc. This doesn't make it unbearably self-indulgent (some other review: "You might think it's self-indulgent, but it's actually great!" which means that it is self-indulgent) by itself, but unbearably plodding. The plot only really picks up in the second half, after her dad's memorial when Deola's hand is forced into action by and gets her happy ending after all. I definitely enjoyed the second half of the novel, with all the characters being determined to Do The Right Thing and coming to like each other after all, more than the first half, which did read as a tiny fog of self-pity.
March 25, 2015
A Bit of Difference by Sefi Atta is an incredible novel that touches on many different themes of expatriate life as well as the difference between the foreign ideas and realities of life in Africa.
This is the first book by Sefi Atta I have read and I was very impressed by her story-telling abilities. Right from the beginning, Deola jumped off the page and I really felt as though I could hear her voice, rather than just reading it.
The book did fall off a bit for me in the second half. I was much more interested in when Deola is in London as well as her trip back to Nigeria. Once she returned to London, I began to lose interest a bit, but it was still compelling enough for me to keep reading.
If you’re looking for African literature, I would definitely recommend this book. Its exploration of the middle class in Nigeria is something that I don’t come across in my reading all that often. I’m looking forward to reading more of Sefi Atta’s work, especially her debut novel, Everything Good Will Come, which won the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa.
You can read my full review
This is the first book by Sefi Atta I have read and I was very impressed by her story-telling abilities. Right from the beginning, Deola jumped off the page and I really felt as though I could hear her voice, rather than just reading it.
The book did fall off a bit for me in the second half. I was much more interested in when Deola is in London as well as her trip back to Nigeria. Once she returned to London, I began to lose interest a bit, but it was still compelling enough for me to keep reading.
If you’re looking for African literature, I would definitely recommend this book. Its exploration of the middle class in Nigeria is something that I don’t come across in my reading all that often. I’m looking forward to reading more of Sefi Atta’s work, especially her debut novel, Everything Good Will Come, which won the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa.
You can read my full review
January 4, 2016
I read this book at the same time I was reading some pretty exciting adventure stories, so in terms of grippingness, it suffered by comparison. It is not a spoiler to say that this book has no swordfights, no scheming by evil mages who will take over the world if they're not stopped, etc. It is utterly realistic. What made it intriguing was that it is nothing like my reality. It is the reality of a Nigerian expat, single and childless in her late 30s. Sefi Atta writes beautifully and leaves a lot unsaid, leading me to various moments of, "What? Ohhhhh."I probably missed a lot, but I appreciated what I got.
October 21, 2012
A contemporary tale set in England and Nigeria about an educated middle class 39-year old woman facing major decisions in her life regarding work, children and marriage, but most of all, where to live. Explores the personal and political complexities of life in modern Nigeria. My full review can be seen at:
August 11, 2013
When I first started this book I couldn't tell where I was or who I was or was supposed to be. The book is somewhat a memoir of what it is to be and to have been Nigerian and how it is to be marginalized.
Somewhere in though, I became hooked. I think the voice becomes the language and vice versa. And I think you begin to look at yourself and how you were raised and how you look at the people.
I don't like the last few pages but I liked the book.
Somewhere in though, I became hooked. I think the voice becomes the language and vice versa. And I think you begin to look at yourself and how you were raised and how you look at the people.
I don't like the last few pages but I liked the book.
February 27, 2014
I really enjoyed this - it doesn't have much in the way of plot, and what there is feels a bit conventional, although I could make a case that Atta is playing with a certain very common trope found in novels about women (and some others). Just as she is not going there with cliche expectations of novels about Nigeria and Nigerians - the protag is from a wealthy family, educated in the UK, and when the novel begins, arriving in USA as part of her job with a small NGO based in London.
April 5, 2016
Very easy, enjoyable read. It does seem to stop all of a sudden.
Excellent bit of stay-at-home-cultural-tourism for me. Interesting experience of the relationship between england and nigeria post colonialism and the cultural contrasts between the two places. Well worth reading, probably the only book I've given 3 stars to that I would go and recommend to other people to read.
Interesting but not amazing, gripping or enthusiasm making I suppose.
Excellent bit of stay-at-home-cultural-tourism for me. Interesting experience of the relationship between england and nigeria post colonialism and the cultural contrasts between the two places. Well worth reading, probably the only book I've given 3 stars to that I would go and recommend to other people to read.
Interesting but not amazing, gripping or enthusiasm making I suppose.
March 24, 2016
She couldn't be a week pregnant. The whole end of the story just falls apart. Well, she can be a week pregnant but it isn't going to show up on a pregnancy test. And while she is home with her family she is "ovulating" and a week later her period is due? That is not how a woman's cycle works. And as far as HIV--three months. She isn't "clean"...she has to get retested at 3 months.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2017
Overall A Bit of Difference was a good read, although I felt like I didnt connect with Deola that well. I found the relationships between Deola interesting. There were a few moments that jumped between different countries and it took a moment to realise she had travelled somewhere. I enjoyed this book but not enough to give it four stars.
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