Official Littafi Logo (2)
Africa Fantasy News Blog Shop

africanliterature

Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly by Isaiah Adepoju

I give Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly, a ten over ten rating but because of the perfectly harnessed themes, settings, conflicts, and resolutions.

Written by Emmanuel Olabiyi
Published on March 6, 2025
Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly

Believing he can fly, ten-year-old Ephraim tragically jumps to his death from a story building. The three members of the Olorunyomi family experience this suicide differently and have to navigate through its grief.

The death in the family separates them and then brings them together. Told in the first person narrative, Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly is one’s family’s search for happiness in the face of overwhelming forces.

Thoughts

Written by my very good acquaintance turned brother, Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly follows the story of the Olorunyomi family and their nuanced perspectives. How they touch the loosened wooly strands of their sanities, tangle, and still rediscover themselves after the loss of their first child, Ephraim.

I was down with malaria while I read this book. But when the plot got a little twisty, and the suspense soared like eagles in crazy altitudes, I grabbed my jotter and penned great things I have coherently relayed on my Substack.

This book, for you seeking texts that magnify the imagined in perfect correlation with the real, will place you right in the nucleus of the mayhem. It is a classified breed that preaches SOC (Stream Of Consciousness) and its replicating meanings. Books like this are seductions in terms of rereads that get clarified as much as you are repetitive with its reading.

Loss is an unpleasant reality. And to “keep going”, to “move on”, as sympathetic as it seems, can be very impractical. This book answers basic questions we ask around in our minds when we see people “go nuts” due to the loss of a close sibling.

They simply are navigating the processes of grief. We all are.

Verdict

I give Happiness Is A Sickle-kinikan In My Belly, a ten over ten rating but because of the perfectly harnessed themes, settings, conflicts, and resolutions. The words kept me on my toes!

Emmanuel Olabiyi

Emmanuel Olabiyi is an English Language undergraduate at the prestigious University of Ibadan. He is a novelist and a flutist.

Top Posts
The Eternal Debate: DC vs. Marvel

The Eternal Debate: DC vs. Marvel

DC is great at making comics and animated movies, while the MCU has the upper hand in its cinematic aspects

Cartoon Characters That Were Villains

Top 30 Cartoon Characters That Were Villains

Our list rounds up the top 30 cartoon characters that were villains, each one more wonderfully wicked than the last.

Best Apps to Read Books

Top 8 Best Apps to Read Books For Free in 2025

Discover the best apps to read books for free in 2025. Access thousands of free e-books and audiobooks on your phone or tablet. ...

Funny Cartoon Characters

20 Funny Cartoon Characters Sure to Crack You Up Good

There are some outright funny cartoon characters who exist solely to crack you up, loud, hard, and with zero apology.

Things Fall Apart quotes

Top 10 Quotes From Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart

Things Fall Apart is for the colonizers as well as the colonized, helping to understand the role of colonialism in the realization...

Nollywood movies

Best 20 Nollywood Movies of All Time

While many of the Nollywood movies on our list are quite old, it’s a testament to the capabilities of the industry’s p...

Top 50 Mythical Creatures in Folklore From Around The World

Top 50 Mythical Creatures in Folklore From Around The World

While this isn’t an exhaustive list, it comprises some of the most popular mythical creatures from around the world.