Kruse's Keys: Read "She Would Be King" to Experience Liberia's Birth (Liberia)

In Philip Hitti's History of the Arabs, he highlights the long-standing Arab appreciation for oral story-telling and poetry which they call sihr halal.  He further describes this ingrained love for "the rhythm, the rhyme, the music, [which] produce on them the effect of what they call "lawful magic" (sihr halal). "  In her debut novel Wayetu Moore channels this idea of lawful magic as she joins magical realist authors like Couto, Martel, and Marquez in her telling of an alternative origin story of the Pepper Coast lands that would become Liberia.

In her novel, Moore has decided to focus not on Liberia's historical realities and details but rather on highlighting the people and ideas that would become Liberia.  This shift allows the reader to more thoughtfully ponder the roles of justice, religion, and slavery against the backdrop of the most unique colonialist setting on the continent.

Envisioned as an alternative to the emancipation of black slaves in the United States, the west coast African colony began through the efforts of the American Colonization Society (ACS) in 1822.  Twenty-five years later it would become an independent nation--Liberia.  The entire venture was embroiled in controversy as many freed blacks in the United States viewed this as an affront to their efforts and rights to exist in America.  That many members of the ACS were prominent white politicians further served to support this viewpoint.

Like all colonization, Liberia's was rife with bloodshed, betrayal, theft, and violence.  The initial land purchase was only successful when the US Navy Lieutenant leading the expedition "encouraged" the local tribe leader King Peter to sell them a tract of land at gunpoint.  The colony's further expansion came at the expense of the bordering native villages and tribes over the ensuing century.

That history, however, is not the author's focus--instead she has created the story of three superhumans from three groups who eventually made up the country of Liberia.  The first is Norman Aragon, the son of a white colonialist and a free Jamaican woman.  He inherits his father's pale skin but his mother's ability to disappear and move invisibly.  The second is June Dey, the son of an American slave woman and a ghost.  He soon discovers that he has superhuman strength and that bullets and blades have no effect on him.  The last is the heroine Gbessa who is outcast from a local Vai tribal village after she is proclaimed a witch as a young girl.  She soon finds out that while she can be hurt and feel intense pain she cannot die--she is eternal.  Moore weaves the tales of these three lives into an intersection that climaxes as they seek the future of a land and country.  This beautiful tapestry will leave a lasting impression on any reader--Africanist or not.

*One of my Reading Around the Continent books--the full list is here.
See our 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014 Reading Lists.

Key References:
Library of Congress primary source information on ACS and Liberia origins
Powell's Interview: Wayétu Moore, Author of 'She Would Be King'
She Would Be King by Wayétu Moore review – magical visions of Liberia
In Wayétu Moore’s Ambitious Debut Novel, Liberia Is Reborn
A SENSE OF GOD: SHE WOULD BE KING BY WAYÉTU MOORE

Kruse's Keys: Read "The Insanity of God" To Change Your Perspective (Audible) (Somalia)

When many critics of Christianity think of missionaries they picture black-clad old-fashioned looking men and women proselytizing loudly in the streets--calling adamantly for repentance. If you fall into that category I challenge you to read this book--it will upend your perspective.

At one point Ripken's NGO was the ONLY ONE operating in Somalia--his team of 8 was feeding 50,000 refugees a day and running mobile health clinics around the country.  Without his efforts countless hundreds of thousands would have starved.  When no one else was there--he was--serving and loving the Somali people.    It was in his years there that he also learned the costs though of following his calling--he lost a son and hundreds of Somali friends who ended up believing in Jesus. He had this to say about religious persecution:

“I’d never met a believer in persecution that wasn’t running for their life,” said Ripken. “In those years in Somalia, we had 150 followers of Jesus in the country. When we left, only four were left alive. They hunted them down like we would hunt animals in rural Kentucky. They killed four of my best friends in one day in Somalia."

But in a lifetime spent serving in high risk, war torn, countries he shares what he learned firsthand from persecuted Somalis, Chinese, Russians, and Ukrainians: persecution isn't something to be lamented:

“The reason for persecution, then, is that people keep finding Jesus—and, then, they refuse to keep Him to themselves.”

These firsthand lessons are the result of what has turned into his life's mission--learning and sharing the stories of God at work throughout the globe--to date he and his wife have conducted more than 600 interviews in 72 countries.  

Regardless of your faith background, this book will challenge your perspective. 

*One of my Reading Around the Continent books--the full list is here.
See our 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014 Reading Lists.

Key Quotes:
"Our hope is that believers around the world will get close enough to the heart of God that the first images that come to mind when we hear the word “Muslim” are not Somali pirates or suicide bombers or violent jihadists or even terrorists. When we hear the word “Muslim,” we need to see and think of each and every individual Muslim as a lost person who is loved by God. We need to see each Muslim as a person in need of God’s grace and forgiveness. We need to see each Muslim as someone for whom Christ died.”

“Don’t ever give up in freedom what we would never have given up in persecution!

“The reason for persecution, then, is that people keep finding Jesus—and, then, they refuse to keep Him to themselves.”

“one of the most accurate ways to detect and measure the activity of God is to note the amount of opposition that is present.”

“Don’t you steal my joy! I took great joy that I was suffering in my country, so that you could be free to witness in your country.”

“You can only grow in persecution what you go into persecution with.”

"Lost people have a greater right to access Jesus than I have a right to exert my religious freedom.”

“I had always assumed that persecution was abnormal, exceptional, unusual, out of the ordinary. In my mind, persecution was something to avoid. It was a problem, a setback, a barrier. I was captivated by the thought: what if persecution is the normal, expected situation for a believer? And what if the persecution is, in fact, soil in which faith can grow? What if persecution can be, in fact, good soil? I began to wonder about what that might mean for the church in America—and I began to wonder about what that might mean for the potential church in Somalia.”

Key References (For Further Study)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TAbJeFMrvM

Baptism: The Point of No Return A story from Somalia

Nik Ripken: Lessons from the persecuted world for America

https://www.nikripken.com/

Nik Ripken Suggested Book List