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Surviving SAJOMACO: A Nigerian Boarding School Odyssey
- Narrated by: Bunmi Asaolu
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
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Surviving SAJOMACO: A Nigerian Boarding School Odyssey
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Summary
Question: What do you do when the kitchen wall collapses into the vat of beans being cooked for a horde of hungry schoolboys?
Answer: You serve it up anyway! Why let a few lumps of clay and the odd metal screw spoil a decent meal?
When Bunmi Asaolu arrived at the grand gates of St. John/Mary's Unity Secondary School (SAJOMACO) as a first-year student, you'd be forgiven for assuming he was swapping life on the serene university campus he grew up on for another of equal civility. Wrong! Behind the gates of SAJOMACO lay a world of contradictions - unspoken but strict codes of hierarchy juxtaposed with utter chaos.
Asaolu presents a wry, satirical and at once serious look at a Nigerian public boarding school in the 1990s through the eyes of a sheltered child navigating its brutal corridors. In Surviving SAJOMACO, Asaolu’s experiences and those of his contemporaries are laid bare, giving the listener a raw and at times jarring insight into the incongruencies of school life, whilst subtly tracking the story of Nigeria itself.
What listeners say about Surviving SAJOMACO: A Nigerian Boarding School Odyssey
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Joseph L.
- 18-10-21
I can’t quite believe a human lived through this!!!
For me, the sign of great prose, isn’t necessarily one that’s easily readable/listenable (though this is), or one that’s immediately captivating (though this is) or even anxiety-inducing 😅 (which this definitely is), but one that provides those rare, impactful “I was there” moments.
I can tell you exactly where I was and how I felt whilst watching the 2008 Champions League Final, I can tell you exactly where I was when Trump won the US election. I can equally tell you exactly how I felt on the A406, listening to the crescendo of the final chapters, missing every exit & turn to my home due to the shock, horror and awe I felt with those SAJOMACO students.
An expertly written book, I commend the author on his ability to make you FEEL on every page. If you’ve read the book, I’d encourage you to please listen on Audible too.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Osi OO
- 25-11-21
Captivating
Very captivating book, wonderful to be able to get some insight into boarding school in Nigeria, even if you have not been to boarding school this is a great read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- daygrace
- 02-09-21
The quintessential Nigerian boarding school experience
What a powerful narration of what could have easily been my own childhood for the most part. I found this thoroughly enjoyable whilst at the same time feeling utmost sympathy for what most Nigerian teenagers have been through as a rite of passage into adulthood.
Bunmi Asaolu has probably opened a whole new genre of Nigerian writing with this book.
Well worth the listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- D. Sewell
- 23-09-21
What a ride!!!
This book kept me engaged all the way through.
The crazy happenings at Sajomaco made me very greatful for my school teachers and fellow pupils over here in the UK. I love how Bunmi describes the incidents with great detail so it's easy to picture. The experience at the school was quite savage at times and it's amazing that Bunmi looks back and sees the experience as something that made him the man he is today. A story well told.
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- MsAsh, Chigwell
- 03-04-22
Wow... wow... wow...
I did not know that a boarding school life in Nigeria could be so adventurous, emotional and beautifully crazy all in one!!! 😁
Thank you for creating this wonderful memoir. Highly recommended book!
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