[BOOK REVIEW] We Need Our Own Heroes: “Sense Pass King: The Case Flies Of Albert Acha”
I shed a tear when I heard of Stan Lee’s death, as a diehard marvel comics fan, how could I not? I grew up believing I will one day skip from skyscraper to skyscraper with the aid of some spider web I’ll hang around with no care in the world like Peter Parker or that when I finally make it to outer space (I still hope I’ll be able to go someday), I’ll get exposed to some strange radiation and I will be able to “flame on” like Johnny from Fantastic Four. So, when I heard of the death of the man who largely contributed to my dreamy young boy days, I could not remain indifferent and moreover, it sounded cool and trendy to mourn for the old man so I jumped on the band wagon of Stan Lee mourners.
The whole thing got me thinking, I saw my friends and I grief over the death of a guy we were never 20,000KM close to and it struck me that there was nobody down here in Cameroon, particularly, who could provoke such a feeling in us. My thoughts further expanded when I learnt of the death of “Sponge Bob’s” creator, then I started thinking of all my childhood heroes from Robin Hood, the guy who stole from the rich to give to the poor, Seiya, the knight who endlessly fought to defend Athena’s integrity, Hercules, son of Zeus to Batman AKA Bruce Wayne, the billionaire bachelor with a penchant for justice and it confirmed my first thought which stipulated that there was no hero to whom I could anchor my emotions and personality to in Africa, at least no fictional one.
Then, I thought there should be one somewhere and he was just suffering from bad press as is the case with many great ideas down here. I few weeks later I stumbled on a book by a Cameroonian author Hesley Fonane, “Sense Pass King: The Case Files of Albert Acha”. Interesting caption isn’t it? First, what caught my attention was the “Sense Pass King” in the caption. I could trace this phrase to somewhere in the most disorderly areas of my memory’s labyrinth, something in relation to some animal in the jungle which outsmarted the lion, or so, I can’t really make it out. But what I knew for sure was I had seen that phrase before and being a creature of familiarity as we humans are, it immediately caught my attention and I was prompted to read. Also, in one episode of the Poise 1/x show, I remember Tino talking with this writer guy and the names matched perfectly, Hesley Fonane, definitely if Tino had this guy on that show, then he should be a great guy so I dove headfirst into Albert Acha’s world.
In this book, the very first thing that blew me away was the setting in which the stories were told. The first story is set in “Abakwa”, what some of you young folks know as Bamenda. Having schooled in a boarding school somewhere in that town, I could see all the scenes as if I were there, this was the first time I was reading a book and feeling like I had participated in writing it, I mean, I could have personally taken Mr & Mrs Tchamaha to “Foncha Junction” should they have been too startled by the news of Belinda’s ordeal. In the other stories, Albert (the hero of the book) tours different towns of Cameroon and for someone who loves to travel like I do, I will definitely like to have Albert’s job.
I was particularly awestruck when Albert went to Buea. I have never been to Buea but tales of this city have been so reoccurring that sometimes my subconscious tricks me into believing I have actually been there, and Hesley further intensified that trickery with his pitch perfect description of every nook and cranny of the place, I could feel the vibe of the legendary Molyko and if I ever find myself in Buea, Albert Acha’s itinerary will be a perfect roadmap for me. The pleasure I derived from this book’s setting arrived its apogee when Albert came to Yaoundé, from his arrival at the muddy motor park at “Biscuterie” around “Boulangerie Francaise” to his visit to Mr. Aboubakar in the beautifully carved out “Odza” neighborhood, Hesley Fonane’s description of each area tells of a good mastery of his country giving you a clear mental picture of the adventures of the hero, Albert Acha. This alone can keep you stuck with that book in your hand until the very final full-stop.
The next thing that makes this book an absolute read is the man, Albert Acha. Ordinarily I should have started by introducing him, but I decided to put down those paragraphs about the books setting to give myself enough momentum to be able to adequately do justice to his personality. The name “Acha’ betrays his “graffi” origins but mind you, he is not your regular “graffi-man”. Albert Acha is the neplusultra of a detective who sees what nobody sees and reads signs from places where every other person sees naught. His keen attention to details and his ability to combine intuition, philosophy and every other piece of information both on and off the crime scene to make conclusions and predictions with stifling accuracy will forever remain an unresolved mystery to his clients, his associate Sophie Enow and to the readers of this book. Albert Acha is the very impersonation of logic, he has a knack for undoing the undoable and a very unique way of making superstition lose its place in the minds of those he encountered, even in an environment like ours where “witchcraft” always seems to be a plausible explanation for something as little as a headache.
Albert Acha is also a grandmaster of human behavior; this particular attribute permits him to guess with prophesy-like certitude the next course of action of some persons. This was made clear in the case of the five “torokis”. Albert could tell exactly where they will be enjoying the money they took from Mr. Anagho and turned their arrogance into their waterloo. Throughout Albert Acha’s investigations, he will surprise both his clients and the reader with his analysis, deductions, predictions and conclusions. As a detective, Albert Acha is “the full package”. He is the kind of guy you’ll gladly give a bonus to. For the record, for you to fully understand the depth and efficiency of Albert’s personality as a detective, you’ll need to read that book and for the slow folks, maybe, a chat with his creator, Hesley Fonane.
Fonane’s mastery of Cameroonian culture makes his book a reference for future generations. Fonane brings out key aspects of Cameroonian realities which stem from traditional and cultural beliefs, notably teenage marriages in the case of Mr. Aboubakar’s missing wife, who derived a whole scheme to elope to Germany in her quest for a decent education. Here, Hesley brings out a daunting reality some young girls born into Muslim families undergo, as their cultural beliefs place the girl child in no other place than her husband’s kitchen and in his bed. In Belinda’s case, the repercussions of the attitude of our parents towards sex education is portrayed as Belinda due to inadequate information on the struggles of puberty coupled with the fear of her parents’ reaction resorted to abortion which caused her to go into a deep depression. Sex education is shunned in all typical Cameroonian homes; sex is treated like the holy grail of unholy things and is avoided like the mortal remains of an Ebola patient, hence leading a lot of youths into error and subsequent regret. “Sense Pass King: The Case Files of Albert Acha” is its own way is a cultural statement, whose lessons should be taken seriously.
With all these said anyone who reads this book can easily see in Albert Acha the arrival of a typical Cameroonian hero. The stories told by Hesley Fonane about the works of Albert Acha, make him a model of logical thinking and problem solving, bringing the average Cameroonian to realize that something good can effectively be born in Cameroon by Cameroonians. Albert Acha’s integrity is as spot-on as that of Robin Hood and the other aforementioned heroes, as he dedicates his whole life and mission to the quest for the truth. Albert Acha is the man who brings clairvoyance and justice where all hope for the latter or the former is lost, he is most often his clients’ last resort, and his ability to always deliver accurately shows his love for justice.
I think we need more people like Albert Acha, both in fiction and in real life, we need Cameroonians who have a burning urge to reveal the truth and to see justice prevail and if literature like “Sense Pass King” can be made into movies, cartoons and study material, it will go a long way to change people’s mentalities about the truth and about logical thinking, starting with the infants who are always in a constant search for something or someone to anchor their personalities to.
In short, I think we need to make and to be our own heroes!
- Emmanuel Asafor