Nii Ayikwei Parkes: Tail of the Blue Bird - A Reading Guide

Glossary
Abomu – belt
Adowa – a traditional dance of the Akan
Agoo – a word shouted instead of knocking on someone’s door (most homes had no doors to knock)
Akwaaba – welcome (the response depends on who you’re addressing Yen nua for a friend, Yen Na for an older woman, etc.)
Amee – response to ‘Agoo’ meaning, ‘we’re here’ or ‘come in’
Anyen – witch
Awurade – lord
Bassa bassa – wild, disorderly
Been-to – someone who has returned from living/studying outside the country
Benada – Tuesday
Bidie – charcoal
Bosomtwe – a natural crater lake, formed by meteor impact centuries ago
Chale – a term used to address friends, similar to ‘my friend,’ but warmer
Dwowda – Monday
Fida – Friday
Kama – perfect
Kete – a woven mat with many uses
Kwaku Ananse – mythical trickster who inhabits most Akan moral tales
Kwasia – fool, buffoon
Kwasida – Sunday
Menada – Saturday
Nawotwe – an Akan week (normally eight days)
Onyame – God
Opanyin – elder (used to address the older people in any community), a similar word is Egya.
Paa – word used for emphasis, equivalent of ‘very’ or ‘really’
Sanyaa – Enamel
Sebi – an expression used when people speak of things that make them uncomfortable, or things they usually wouldn’t speak of
Trotro – an adapted minivan bus
Wukuda – Wednesday
Yawda – Thursday

Questions

‘Sebi, our village is like a vagina. Those on the inside have no problems with it; those on the outside think it stinks.’ There is much humour in Tail of the Blue Bird, look at where this arises and examine how the clash of the two cultures (city and village) provide much of the dramatic tension in the novel.

I am not the one to tell you what is true. I am telling you a story. On this earth we have to choose the story we tell, because it affects us – how we live.’ Explore the importance of storytelling in the novel.

‘My writing tends to come from character. I could use a coffee metaphor. You don’t want all coffee to taste the same: every coffee bean has a flavour of its origin. In the same way, all my characters have language reflecting where they come from.’ Look at the language each of the characters speak. How do their words define them?