Yemi Adesanya is a Sudoku-loving accountant and risk manager who lives in Lagos with her husband and children. A lover of fictional characters Gregory House and Lincoln Rhyme, Yemi is also the inventor of two card games, Jungle and The Game of Giants.
“Musing Of A Tangled Tongue” is Yemi’s first book, and was published by Kiibaati Resources Limited in April 2016. The book is 60 pages long, and is a poetry collection of over 54 poems.
In a condensed literary atmosphere where there are never-ending arguments on how “true poetry” should be written, what with the rules about rhyme schemes, Yemi splashes fresh ink on a canvas of lines and stanzas. Her poems reach for you with unforced appeal, and wrap you smoothly at the same time. There are no strenuous attempts to be deep, and this collection would not be headlining any major poetry festivals, but sometimes readers are tired of the Okigbo-esque, Nwoga-esque and Diop-ish flow of verse, and earnestly yearn for something new.
In “Love In Designer Threads”, Yemi explores fashion and vanity with lines like ‘will you be the fierce feline on my Klein /or the sole west that takes me from Nine to five?’ She talks about beauty in “Miss Zara’s Secret” with lines like ‘all things soft and beautiful /red and pink and colourful /desires sewn with dainty lace / Victoria keeps her secret safe.’
“Loafday” shows Yemi’s sassy side with lines like ‘a crazy bitch, oh yes I am /my head’s undone and proud I am / breakfast in bed wouldn’t be so bad / do it for lovers’ month, don’t feel so bad.’ She tries her hands at political consciousness in “Hallelujah” with flows like ‘you said we’re pained that Goodluck lost / we shouldn’t talk ‘cos you’re the Boss / a plate of rice, I ask, what is it to ya? / as your hashtag flies, your conscience dies.’
In “Special Characters”, Yemi plays on words with verses in the lines of:
‘Awaken from a Comma,
As someone shouted: “His colon is on fire!”
Saved by a timely exclamation!
Now he’s gotta live with a semicolon; ‘
Yemi Adesanya’s poetry is witty, it’s irreverent, it’s relatable, and most importantly, it is refreshing. There are no-holds barred in her use of poetic licence, and she still does a good job in balancing humour with driving home her points, carpenter style. The only negative, really, is that the book was too short, and the arrival at the last page was too abrupt. The book also lost a bit of its bearing in the middle, but luckily regained balance in the final third.
If Yemi intends to take poetry seriously though, there are a few aspects of her construction she needs to work on, and she will not be winning any awards with this. She plays too much, but we love it, and we will play with her.
Rating: 6.8/10
Read up more of my ramblings here