“When men were men and women were won by those who deserved them.”
Cyprian Ekwensi's The Passport of Mallam Ilia was my first introduction to ‘serious’ literature of any kind. Before that, Lamb's Tales from Shakespeare and various Secret Seven and Famous Five novels by Enid Blyton occupied my reading universe.
I remember being enthralled by Ilia and its world. It was filled with exactly the sort of thing a boy my age would love: fights to the death over fair maidens in faraway, exotic lands. Magic and suspense dripped from every page—what a wonderful introduction to good reading.
For some reason, I didn't get to read some of his other perhaps more famous novels, like Jagua Nana but I intend to rectify that stat!
Ekwensi died this week. RIP.
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