It
is a fact that the novel genre nay all other forms of literature are inspired
either by real-life experiences or just a sting from the inspiration bug.
Whether encountered or imagined or a slice of both, the novel often contains
universal truths or lessons that mirror every facet of life of man. Sefi Atta’s
debut novel entitled Everything Good Will
Come is not an exception. In it Atta dramatizes the realities of human
conditions namely, marriage, religion, culture, political instability, to
mention just a few.
EverythingGood Will Come is about the coming-of-age of Enitan, the
chief character, as she develops from a gripping aura of innocence to an
assertive consciousness. Born into two tangled worlds – an unhappy home where
father and mother are like cats and rats, and a country replete with political inconsistencies
and instability – Enitan staggers her way through self-doubt into
self-realisation and actualisation. The story dramatizes how Enitan manages to
defy her childhood pre-conditioning of a failed marriage as characterised by
her parents’ unending fight and misunderstanding.
