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| Got this copy of The Road to the Salt Sea by Samuel Kolawale at the Public Library - January 2025 |
Good evening beautiful souls,
I just finished Samuel Kolawale's The Road to the Salt Sea and it was such a page turner, I finished it in one weekend. These African writers have me on cloud 9...I am still in awe of the last book I read, A Kind of Madness by Uche Okonkwo (read my review here).
The book I just finished touches on immigration, corruption and the reality of human trafficking. It’s a story about a young man named Able God - a very Nigerian name like Sunday - whose family finances aren’t what they used to be. He ends up working at a hotel where the wealthy "big boys" come through, sometimes with their mistresses. One of the ladies has her eye on Able God, and he also finds himself attracted to her. She ends up almost killing her 'sponsor', and Able God is forced to finish the job when he goes up to their room. Now both of them are on the run, and through connections from his football pals - real football, not American football - he ends up meeting Ben Ten who helps people migrate to Europe through Niger, Libya, and across the Mediterranean to Italy.
This is where I admit, my knowledge for that part of Africa is very limited. Reading this book challenged my understanding of North Africa. Other than Mona Eltahawy, whom I met in 2016 when I spoke in Aspen during my freshman year as an Aspen Institute fellow, I haven't read much about this side of Africa.
I’ve never really paid much attention to that route, but after seeing a BBC documentary on it, I’m planning to watch it and maybe even do a review. This book centers around that journey, highlighting not just the dangers of crossing the desert but the aspects of human trafficking and the corruption within humanitarian organizations. It showcases the horrifying and dangerous ways people cross the seas in unseaworthy boats, risking everything just to be rescued by Italian ships, only to be taken to an unknown destination. I had no idea this world existed, and a quick Google search only deepened my curiosity.
I was concerned about Able God's wellbeing, and though he is currently in a camp in Malta and had just won his first game of "street chess," which he can turn into a source of income, I still want to know what happened to him. I feel like I will be one of those people Auntie Chimamanda mentioned in her TED talk, suggesting what they think the sequel to one of her books should be. As a matter of fact, I will write to the author, who I just discovered is a professor at one of the schools in my state.
I’m also curious to know if Ben Ten intentionally brings people into slavery, and if they ever leave those camps or get stuck there indefinitely. Do the governments know these camps exist?
As many of you know, I’ve long been curious about addiction, and now, as I reflect on my own journey, immigration has been weighing on my mind. Since I moved to the U.S. for school, this topic has been brought to the forefront, especially with the new administration. If you follow the news, you know about the ICE raids—operated by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Department—that have been taking place. I want to explore immigration, as I mentioned in my “Dirty December” post. Immigration started with rural migration, then moved into the international space for education and the whole Green Card system. There's also labor-ship-related immigration, which I touched on in one of my class presentations when discussing mental health. Many people find themselves in the Middle East, and there have been a lot of documentaries showing the hardships those taking that route endure.
This theme is also present in The Road to the Sea, where God, despite being a graduate, can't get a job in Nigeria and ends up in a dangerous situation. He thinks about how the system failed him—how if the system had worked better, he could have found another job and never ended up in this space. His story deeply reflects the systemic failures that affect millions of people, forcing them into situations they would never have considered if they had had better opportunities. It made me reflect on my own journey as well—about how many of us face similar challenges, despite our qualifications and aspirations.
I was concerned about Able Gods wellbeing, and though he is currently in a camp in Malta and had just got his first winning from a game of ‘street chess’ which he can turn into a source of income, I still want to know what happened to him. I feel like I will be one of those people Auntie Chimamanda mentioned in her TED talk that told her what they think the sequel to one of her books should be. As a matter of fact, I will write the author who I just discovered is a Professor in one of the schools in my state.
I am also curious to know if Ben Ten intentionally brings people into slavery, and if they ever leave those camps or get stuck there for perpetuity.
Do the governments know that these camps exist
Challenged my knowledge of North Africa - other than Mona Eltahawy who I met in 2016 when I spoke in Aspen during my freshman year as an Aspen Institute fellow, I have not read
Settings/Geography
Side of Africa - new thing
Ben Ten
Death and loss
Video from YouTube
and I finish reading a book by Samuel K the road to the sea it’s a story about an alley childhood adult guy named God that’s a very, very Nigerian name whose family finances and not what they used to be so he ends up working at our hotel where the big guys do you want to bum bum with a big boys type of people come through And sometimes they come through with them mistresses so he has an eye so one of the ladies has an eye on it good and they will God also has an ion she ends up killing her ““ sponsor almost killing him and then a God who comes and finishes the job and so they’re both on the run then through the guys that it got place football with and I’m talking real football not American football real football like Premier League football so one of the guys help him meet that helps people to get to Europe through Niger Libya and crossing the sea into Italy so I have never really paid attention to that route. I noticed a BBC documentary about it and I’m going to look for it to watch it and maybe do a review but this book sort of Centres on that journey and so the rest of the book highlights the journey including crossing through the desert aspects of human trafficking and corruption in humanitarian comes as well as mother and just the horrific and dangerous ways people cross the seas on boots that are not meant to be deep in the watersuntil they rescued by Italian ships and ticket to come in this place I didn’t know existed and some googling about it.
Until they rescued by Italian ships and ticket to come in this place I didn’t know existed and some googling about it.
So many of you know my curiosity is in Addiction and I’m thinking I’m thinking through the mental health workforce but now something that has been at the back of my mind is immigration and that something that I’ve been thinking about since I moved to the US for school so this topic has been brought to the forefront recently because of the new administration hand in the US if you follow the news you know that they started doing that being called the ice rates because the people that enforcement Department of group that’s in charge of that is called ice so I wanna dive a little bit of very lightly on immigration and as I mentioned in my dirty December post Immigration started with rural up and then people started moving abroad for school then the whole Green card space and they also label has ship related immigration and this is something I mentioned in my class presentation what else speaking about mental health and how people sometimes find themselves in the Middle East and there are a lot of Documentary news features that have shown the hardships that people who take that route go through and this is also something that’s highlighted in this book because we see good is someone who actually graduated by? Just wasn’t able to get a job and that’s how he ended up working in that hotel and even as he’s on the road he thinks about how the a good system has failed him and he thinks that if the system was better to have gotten another job and not ended up in in this space that he was in that let him to meet that lady and eventually kill the man that he killed so as I was thinking about his own reflection as I reflected on my own journey
Immigration, Corruption, and the Reality of Human Trafficking: A Reflection on The Road to the Sea by Samuel K.
Many books by Africans in the Diaspora touch on migration, but this one offers a unique twist. It's not about the typical American experience, but rather the often-overlooked journey through North Africa, a route that many migrants take on their way to Europe. I’ve been reflecting on the themes in The Road to the Sea by Samuel K. and it’s struck me on many levels.
The character of Able God, a man whose life spirals after his family loses their wealth, really got me thinking. Despite landing a job at a hotel where the rich and famous pass through, his life takes a tragic turn when he gets caught up in a deadly situation. His path eventually leads him into the world of migration, corruption, and exploitation. His journey highlights the brutal realities of human trafficking and the dangerous routes migrants take, including crossing the Sahara desert and the Mediterranean Sea.
The book pushed me to learn more about the route through Niger, Libya, and across the sea to Italy. I’ve seen BBC documentaries on it, but reading this book gave me a closer, more personal understanding. It challenged my knowledge of North Africa and prompted me to research the conditions these migrants face. It’s a heartbreaking reality—people crossing the sea in unseaworthy boats, risking everything for a better life, only to be rescued by Italian ships and brought to an unknown fate. This stark reality highlights not only the corruption within the system but also the failed humanitarian assistance and the responsibility we have as a global community.
Able God's story reminds me of the painful truth that many, including those who are educated and capable, find themselves forced to take desperate measures because of the systemic failures in their home countries. The journey they take is fraught with danger and uncertainty, and I couldn’t help but think about how often this is the result of a broken system. For God, it was the lack of a job in his own country, a failing system that made him feel his only option was to leave.
As I reflect on his story, I’m also reflecting on my own journey, especially around immigration. I’ve been in the U.S. for school, and immigration issues are close to my heart. The recent news about ICE raids and the immigrant experience in the U.S. has brought these topics to the forefront once again. I’ve seen firsthand how the system fails so many, and how people, in their search for a better life, face unimaginable hardships. In my own class presentations, I’ve shared how immigration often intersects with mental health, and how the trauma of displacement and the struggle to survive can have lasting impacts on people’s well-being.
Immigration, corruption, and the human cost of migration are issues that hit close to home for many of us. I want to keep the conversation going and reflect on how we, as a society, can address the systemic problems that perpetuate these issues. As I continue to dive into these topics, I urge us all to think about the human stories behind the headlines. These are not just statistics—they are real people, with dreams, struggles, and untold stories.
And as I read The Road to the Sea, I find myself wanting to know more about these journeys, about the systems at play, and most of all, about the people who are enduring them.
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