An Excerpt from HALF A LION

 

Below is an excerpt from my upcoming debut novel HALF A LION. Stories and songs have been favored staples of the oral African traditions passed down the generations. In this book, I combine two of my great loves; history and poetry. Happy reading and watch this space.

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Mansah loosened his sword in its scabbard and checked the arrows in his quiver. Then he wrapped his robe tighter around himself and settled down to listen to a group of warriors chant A Song of Blood and Feathers.

“Long ago, lived a warrior with dreams untold

With hair of glowing coal, eyes of a fiery gold

His blade was fine and bow of pine

Into the darkness, he braved the cold

 

The White Garden held a fate unknown

 For what was beyond, he longed to own

A haunted boy ached for honor's sake

 And in the jungle, you wish you take

 

Blood on stones, pinch of scathing daggers

The warrior climbed, each step on weak boulders

The Garden fought back with flashes in the dark

Yet willing hearts triumph where strength staggers

 

Under the moonlit shower, the injured bird lay

Words unhurried, to beg and pray

For a chance to see the eagle dance

And the moon blinded in a feathery trance

 

 

Far away, a dozen winged beasts soared

And in the twilight, the great warrior roared

They came swooping to answer a master's call

Where no one dares, there you will find your all.”

 

“Feels good to hear the words of our forefathers,” someone said behind him.

Mansah looked over his shoulder to see the chief frowning. He had not even heard the man approach. He sighed. “The songs always talk of glorious victories, but never of untimely deaths, my chief,” he said, thinking of the tribesmen who had screamed for help as the bushfires seized them.

Kheng sat down beside him, his armor creaking. “The songs are not meant to remind us of death, but to celebrate a great life,” the chief said. “The skyfather makes some people faster, some louder, some stronger. But in death, one skeleton is the same as the other. It is the gift of life that matters, the hearts given to each of us, and what we do with it. When it is all done, the skyfather will ask you what you did with that strong heart he gave to you, that keen nose, that sharp eye. The songs of the tribe will answer for you.”