SNIPPETS (40)- BY SUMAILA UMAISHA

_From my chats with writers_

My favourite theme is the human condition and identity. I was born in London in 1953 and raised in Lagos. Having been born what is variously called ‘half-caste’, ‘mixed-race’, ‘coloured’, ‘metisse’, I was obviously confronted from the start with the vexed issue of identity. And that's what drives my interest in exploring themes of identity and belonging. When I was younger, I considered it a burden but, as I grew older, I began to see it as a blessing. We are all challenged with the question of who we are, made more difficult by those who imagine they already know because they think their place in the world is secure, until they suddenly discover it isn’t with all the angst which necessarily follows. The average Nigerian male, for instance, assumes all sorts of things about his rightful place without the need to individuate, and therefore know who he really is.

-Adéwálé Májà-Pearce