I got this book from a book stand and it was an incredible book. I found myself despising the main character, Ike, yet rooting for him at the same time. Ike is a taxi driver in New York, unable to secure a better job because of his accent, frustrated with his financial situation brought on by his gambling problem, he hatches a plan to make himself very rich.
Ike is smug, proud and self righteous. He makes up his mind to travel to his village in Nigeria, snatch Ngene, a war deity worshipped by his people, and sell it to a New York art gallery, totally convinced that this is his way into the big leagues, hoping to scorn his temperamental African American ex- wife Bernita, and provide a better life for his mother and sister whom he neglected.
Through his journey back to Nigeria, Okey Ndibe moves the reader along, we see his outrage and response to the reality of living in Africa, and the love he feels for his maternal home, his mother, grandmother and Uncle. Still it does not deter him from his mission. We see an exchange of African proverbs and jokes, and the banter between old friends.
I loved the plot, theme and setting of the story. It is a sweet, simple , and interesting tale of man's desperation, and our inability to forsee the future consequences of our actions.
Synopsis
Foreign Gods, Inc., tells the story of Ike, a New York-based Nigerian cab driver who sets out to steal the statue of an ancient war deity from his home village and sell it to a New York gallery. Ike's plan is fueled by desperation. Despite a degree in economics from a major American college, his strong accent has barred him from the corporate world. Forced to eke out a living as a cab driver, he is unable to manage the emotional and material needs of a temperamental African American bride and a widowed mother demanding financial support. When he turns to gambling, his mounting losses compound his woes. And so he travels back to Nigeria to steal the statue, where he has to deal with old friends, family, and a mounting conflict between those in the village who worship the deity, and those who practice Christianity. A meditation on the dreams, promises and frustrations of the immigrant life in America; the nature and impact of religious conflicts; an examination of the ways in which modern culture creates or heightens infatuation with the "exotic," including the desire to own strange objects and hanker after ineffable illusions; and an exploration of the shifting nature of memory, Foreign Gods is a brilliant work of fiction that illuminates our globally interconnected world like no other. (less)
