Book highlights consequences of social issues

A review of Olushola Adeborode Kolawole’s The Little Things That Matter.

THE book, ‘The Little Things That Matter’, is a collection of three short stories written by Olushola Adeborode Kolawole (OAK), founder/CEO of OAK Foundation, a charity organisation aimed at supporting indigent students, widows and the fatherless in Africa.

The book, which is a 2021 publication of OAK Foundation, explores certain social issues and their consequences at familial level. Since the three stories revolve round the common familial themes of relationship, family, friendship and teamwork, the book qualifies to be called a trilogy.

The book, lucidly written, is made up of 119 pages and branched into three spellbinding stories – ‘The Little Things That Matter’, ‘Twelve Years and a Fight’ and ‘Mother’s Marriage’.The second story in this unputdownable collection, unarguably the longest story, is in two parts – ‘The Genesis’ and ‘The Resolve’.

The first story, ‘The Little Things That Matter’, written in third person narrative, is about career choice and prospects. It reveals the significance of relying on one’s ability, talent and interest in choosing a lifelong career for the benefit of not only the individual, but also for his/her family. The story, which has its setting within the Gabriel family in Delta State, Nigeria, features Kema as the protagonist. Despite all odds, Kema remains resolute in her choice of field of study, Food and Nutrition, against her father’s wish of more lucrative discipline. This Kema’s apogee of disobedience temporarily costs her a place in her father’s heart as Mr Gabriel refuses to pay her WAEC fee, among other punishments.

Olushola Adeborode Kolawole uses Janusian thinking with pretentious obedience of Kema’s twin sister, Tovo, who plays along with her father’s choice of a lucrative discipline, Medicine, but later succumbs to the whims of her interest in flowering plants. At 200 level, Tovo opts out of Medicine for Agriculture.  The twist in this story lands on Mr Gabriel as a diabetic patient, while the turn occurs when his nutritionist shuffles off the mortal coil. These two outcomes vindicate Kema and her choice of career.

She later becomes her father’s best nutritionist and a source of pride to the Gabriel family when she travels to France on the invitation of her online course adviser, Mr Alexandre.

The second story, ‘Twelve Years and a Fight’, also written in third person narrative, is about vengeance that surfaces as a result of lack of trust. This suspenseful story has several plots that come alive with the technique of flashback as the author unrepentantly displays a style that characterised most of Sidney Sheldon’s celebrated novels. This story is a dramatic urban thriller that highlights trust and betrayal on one hand, and love and hatred on the other. Step by step, the reader will accompany Tade, the protagonist, on his road to perdition as events unfold with terrible acts of violence that eventually consume Tade Ajisafe and his staunch foe, Samson Ogunleye, who emerges from nowhere as his friend to wreak havoc in the family of Tade.

With its setting in Lagos, the first part, ‘The Genesis’, opens with Tade being stranded in the centre of the filthy road of Oloja-Igbe, Ikorodu. His car, a Toyota Camry, develops a fault and halts in the middle of the road. Waiting for his mechanic who will fix the car, an old-time friend, Samson suddenly appears on the scene and fixes the car for him. Tade appreciates the kind gesture and decides to entertain his friend at a nearby restaurant.  Apparently, the stench of their fight of 12 years ago when they were undergraduates still waxes strong around Samson. Tade, who perceives the foul odour of their fight, invites Samson to his luxury apartment for a reconciliatory dinner.

The sight of Tade’s luxury apartment and his beautiful wife, Priscilla, adds more fuel to the fire of vengeance ragging in the mind of Samson as the dinner eventually turns tragic. What was Tade’s offence twelve years ago? He was seduced by Samson’s girlfriend, Queen and jerked hips with her.

Mother’s Marriage, the last story in this collection, written in first person narrative, is about a big dream of Gift Okechukwu, the protagonist, that eventually comes to reality. It is a story of poverty, prosperity, love and hatred as well as disobedience that is weaved around marriage, romance, relationship, wife-battering, hard-work, friendship and teamwork.