This was a such a fun and vibrant reading, exactly my cup of tea.
The author Marguerite Abouet spent her childhood in Ivory Coast in the 70s before moving to Paris, and Aya is based on her memories of those happy days. It was a time when Ivory Coast was going through a peaceful economic boom and this book is meant to portray an Africa that’s not about war, disease or poverty. I does exactly that, but I just couldn’t completely escape the knowledge that it won’t last.
But anywhoo. I loved Aya. It’s one of the best comics of the year so far and I can wait to read the second one. There’s nothing mind-blowing about the story, it’s just a snapshot of the lives of a group of middle-class teenagers: they study, date, are acutely aware of social norms, follow the fads and rebel against strict parents. And yet, Yopougon in the 70s is a fascinating place to read about, full of colour, hope and energy. It’s at the same time familiar (heavily influence by their former French colonizers) and completely foreign.
Aya, the title character, is a steady-fast teen that seems to be the moral compass of her friends and neighborhood – not in a holier-than-thou way, she’s just reliable and principled. Her father’s reaction when Aya told him about wanting to become a doctor is a great example of how this apparently mild book is in fact about more serious social topics.
Clement Oubrerie’s illustrations perfectly complement Abouet’s writing, with their vibrancy, warm and creative angles.
At the end of each book there’s a section about Ivory Cost, where different characters give us recipes, teach us how to tie a skirt the Ivorian way, etc. It’s a cute detail that helps us connect even more with this small community.
I think this is the one comic book I’ve ever read not only written by an African author, but actually set in Africa – can you recommend any others?
The story has been adapted for the big screen, here’s the trailer in French. It gives you a good feeling for the book.
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Other thoughts: Brown Paper, Good Books & Good Wine, the book nest, Escape in a book, Book Addiction, Page 247, Buried in Print, Biblioglobal (yours?)
The Sleepless Reader 
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May 8, 2015 at 5:49 am
heidenkind
This sounds fantastic!
July 10, 2015 at 2:25 pm
Alex
Add it to your wish-list, it’s really worth it!
May 10, 2015 at 2:59 pm
Kinna
A comic that I need to read. Aya is the only comic that is both written by an African and set on the continent. Though, I admit to knowing very little about comics beyond the general. Will have to research. Thanks for the review.
July 10, 2015 at 2:25 pm
Alex
I think some research is in order, but it’s strange that neither of us has heard of any other!
May 11, 2015 at 9:55 pm
aartichapati
I enjoyed this one, too! I think I read all of the books together in one volume, so I’m not sure where this one ends and the next one picks up. It was such a great introduction to a very different world. And so soap opera-ish at parts 🙂
July 10, 2015 at 2:26 pm
Alex
And I laughed out loud in many places – the architecture of the rich family’s house!!
May 18, 2015 at 12:31 am
Athira
I haven’t read this one yet but it’s been on my wishlist for a while. I didn’t know all that backstory about the author having stayed in there and this book being set before the war. I will have to bump it up.
July 10, 2015 at 2:27 pm
Alex
You won’t regret it 🙂
September 25, 2015 at 3:59 pm
Almost done with #ReadHarder – recommendations needed | The Sleepless Reader
[…] A book by an author from Africa: Aya […]
October 16, 2015 at 11:24 am
Aya de Yopougon (Aya #2) by Marguerite Abouet, Clément Oubrerie #Diversiverse | The Sleepless Reader
[…] 2 of the Aya series (thoughts on the first one here) about four families in Yopougon, a neighborhood of Abidjan, Ivory’s Coast’s capital. It’s […]