Book Review II: Namondo (Child of the Water Spirits) by Ntemfac Ofege

Originally Published in Summit Magazine no. 006

Ntemfac A.N. Ofege. Namondo (Child of the Water Spirits). Langaa Publishers. November, 2007. 360 pages (Paperback). Available from Amazon.com ($24.95) and African Books Collective (£19.95)

Ntemfac A.N. Ofege forays into the customs and traditions of the Bakweri people, the often unfathomable dwellers of the lands below the Fako Mountain (Mount Cameroon), to put together a story that is beautiful in content, flowing in style, enthralling in meanders, fetching in intrigue and ethereal in plot. The plot of this book is bustling, fascinating and lingering. This page-turner keeps the reader wondering what next.

Namondo (Child of the Water Spirit) is the story of an exquisite, yet lethal, water spirit or mermaid. This preternatural creature takes on human form and comes to the land to do battle against an equally lethal cult – the Nyongo. Namondo uses her singular power – the magic ring of the water spirits to prevail. The maiden is, however, killed in the process. The ring of the liengu-la-mwanja must return to her son.