BOOK OF THE WEEK: DINNER with KING SOLOMON by MATSHONA DHLIWAYO

Hello people.

Dinner with King Solomon is a book written by Matshona Dhliwayo and published by Wise Words From a Foolish Son Inc.

In the opening chapter of the book, readers are introduced to Kevin, a forty five year old man who hits rock bottom financially when he is swindled by his business partner. In one fell swoop, he loses everything; his house, wife and kids.

Poor, helpless and full of despair, Kevin attempts suicide twice, albeit unsuccessfully. On his second attempt, he hallucinates and dreams that the Biblical King Solomon pays him a visit and gives him a bag of gold coins.

Kevin wakes up and to his surprise, he finds a bag of gold coins in his hands. What follows next is a discourse and a mind- boggling ending that will leave readers' minds reeling.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK

Hmm….

I was blown away by the opening chapter of the book. I love the way Matshona took his time to describe Kevin’s fall from grace. As one reads the book, one can literally see the sprawling mansion, Kevin’s beautiful wife and kids, as well as the horrible car and the gangster neighbourhood that was painted in the book.

I also like the fact that the book is well edited which makes for an enjoyable read, free from the distractions caused by grammatical and typographical errors.

Halfway across the book, however, I was a bit puzzled as to its direction. One moment you're reading about a man who lost all and the next moment you’re reading about the Origins of Life. This leaves the reader wondering, ‘Did I miss something? How did I get here?’

Dinner with King Solomon attempts to answer, albeit in a subtle manner, questions such as Why do bad things happen to good people? The Origin of Life, etc.  

Anyone used to researching such themes will know that they are complex topics that are seldom appropriately covered even in philosophical books written for such purposes, let alone a fiction book. One can only wonder at Matshona’s boldness in attempting to treat such heavy topics in a small book.

Again, while Matshona’s boldness in attempting the subject is admirable, the discourse between Kevin and King Solomon sort of reminded me of certain interviews on television in which the interviewer nods his head in agreement with everything said by the interviewee, such that at the end of the day, viewers cannot help but think, ‘why not just ask the interviewee to give a speech rather than go through the question-and-answer charade?’

I wish Kevin had peppered King Solomon with more hard-hitting questions; for instance, at a point King Solomon says to Kevin that everyone has done bad things at one point or another in their life and so the question, Why do bad things happen to good people? is inherently flawed in itself.

While I may agree with that submission, if I were in Kevin’s place, I may have further asked ‘But what of babies born disfigured? Or toddlers sexually assaulted? What crime did they commit?’ Unfortunately, I am not Kevin and I’m yet to hallucinate about King Solomon so….

After all is said and done, however, Dinner with King Solomon is one book that the philosophically inclined will find interesting and mentally stimulating. It can be gotten on Amazon and any major bookstore.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: LALIBELA'S WISE MAN BY MATSHONA DHLIWAYO

Hello people.

The more books I read, the more I am convinced that there is truth in the saying ‘Do not judge a book by its cover.’ Some books with beautiful covers have such badly written content that at the end of the day, the only thing worth remembering about the book is its cover. Some books, on the other hand, have less than appealing covers but such rich content that the reader cannot easily forget them.

Lalibela’s Wise Man belongs to the latter category. The first time I saw the book, I must confess that my interest was not piqued. First, the title did not sound very appealing and then the book cover itself did not help matters; it looked like it would be a book on African history - which is good if that’s what you’re interested in.

Anyway, I read the book and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. 

Lalibela’s Wise Man is the story of a young man named Christian who, in the beginning, was being groomed to take over his father’s business empire. Christian receives a shocker, however, when his father passes away unexpectedly and his will is read: he was left with nothing but an instruction to visit the wise old man of Lalibela. Dazed and confused, Christian leaves America and sets out for Lalibela, Ethiopia, where he encounters the wise old man, learns some lessons and discovers a secret that will leave him changed forever.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK

I like it. Initially, I found it difficult to start reading the book due to its unappealing book cover but once I started reading I got hooked.

The story is well paced and there’s hardly a dull moment in-between. Starting from Christian’s journey to Ethiopia as well as his encounter with the monks, the tale is quirky and one can’t help but smile at some of Christian’s experiences. At some point the writer struggles between showing and telling, but fortunately he wins the battle and allows readers to get into the characters unhindered.

I also like the fact that the book is very well edited. One can scarcely find an error in the book and this makes for enjoyable reading as well as the possibility of recommending or buying it for people, especially teens and young adults, without a moment’s hesitation.

The only issue I have with the book is that the ending seems to have been a bit rushed. One image that sprang to mind when reading Lalibela’s Wise Man was that of chickens following a farmer as he left a trail of seeds for them on the ground. In Lalibela’s Wise Man, the author leaves enough information in each chapter to keep readers hooked and eager to read the next chapter; in fact at a point, you’re literally begging; 'please break the suspense and let’s know the purpose of each exercise that Christian was put through.'

The end, however, was a bit disappointing, almost like eagerly anticipating a meal only to finally eat and not be very satisfied with the food. Although filled with sage advice, I wish the advice was spread out, maybe at the end of each exercise rather than everything being left for the end. It just seemed a bit too easy.

After all is said and done, however, Lalibela’s Wise Man is definitely a book worth reading and Matshona; an author to watch out for. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Matshona Dhliwayo was born in Zimbabwe but is presently based in Canada. His books include:

His books can be gotten on Amazon and from any major bookshop.