Ekua: Wednesday's Child

In November 1964 Valerie, with her new baby, flew to Ghana. This was the beginning of two decades of life abroad. The couple set up home in a flat in Takoradi, and James continued his naval service. A second child a daughter was born in 1965, and another son followed in 1968. Meanwhile, James career in the navy flourished, and there was much moving from place to place within Ghana, to Britain, and periods in Kenya, Ethiopia and India. This entire period is illustrated with a sequence of colourful anecdotal vignettes set against the unstable, sometimes dangerous background of African politics. The author has a remarkable memory for people, events and circumstantial details. The picture of life in Africa and India is vivid. Living as a European fully embedded in the cultures she describes, her story is quite different from the usual old colonial perspective. The picture of everyday African living is mingled with the high life: James high-flying career brought the couple into political and diplomatic circles. This perspective adds a valuable underpinning to a very personal story.