BN Book Review: Home by Dami Adetu | Review by The BookLady NG

 

Dami Adetu’s Home is a representation of the truth that home is not in a physical building, but in people we can trust our souls with. Home is where love, hope, and dreams begin. Home is where we can be our truest selves without the fear of being judged or ridiculed. Home is a constant reminder of God’s love for us. Home is in God. In the rawest and most tangible form, Dami Adetu brings this truth alive in her debut work of fiction.

In the three-hundred-paged novel, we are introduced to characters who are going through different and difficult hurdles. Tiaraoluwa has hit rock bottom in her romantic relationships. She is deep in the murky waters of heartbreak and the perpetual misery that accompanies it. Neye is drowning in the pool of his fear and doubts. He is about to lose someone dear to him again and he is just too pissed at God to even bother to ask him the reason behind all the losses. Both their situations are reflections of the Bible verse in James chapter 1 that says, “Consider it a sheer gift, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colours. So, don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work, so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.” Unfortunately, as typical of any human, it is difficult to consider any trial a sheer gift when it is constantly draining you of strength. 

During these difficult times, the enemy is on the prowl, quick to throw doubts and questions into your minds. Neye is full of so many doubts that they cast a dark gloom over his life. His unbelief creates an impenetrable fog that causes the angels of God and the servants of the devil to be locked in a battle to dissipate or fuel it, as the case may be. Of course, his unbelief continues to strengthen the dark forces, hence, blinding his eyes to the truth of God’s promises. Neye questions God daily. He is bitter and angry with God for allowing his family to go through all they are going through. But God works in mysterious ways, and like the latter part of that verse infers, there is no pain without purpose in the Christian journey. Finding shortcuts out of it will only make for a deficient life. 

The fact remains that there is no home without love. Love is the bedrock on which a home (relationship) is built, and it is, therefore, not surprising to find this virtue at the essence of this novel. The Bible mentions a few things about love, including that “love never gives up, love doesn’t force itself on others, love doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, love doesn’t revel when others grovel,” but more importantly, the Bible mentions that “God is love.” This is what Dami Adetu shows us throughout the pages of this book. Through every waking and sleeping moment in the lives of these characters, we see how much God constantly looks out for them regardless of what they do right or wrong. We are shown how the ‘groanings’ of the Holy Spirit on their behalf are heard by God. We are shown the ways God dispatches his angels to watch over them and how these angels influence natural elements around them to work out their healing and salvation. We are shown the different forms God uses to speak to these characters. We are shown how much he takes them seriously even to the tinniest scribbling in their journals. Love is a powerful force, and we are shown the extent of its might when it obliterates Neye’s doubts as soon as he confesses his kinship in God’s kingdom. It is this love that dissolves Tiara’s weaknesses giving her the strength to hope. 

A kaleidoscope of the Christian journey and the life of a Christian in its different hues, Home presents to readers how each season in a Christian’s life is an indication of God’s mindfulness. God is ever mindful of Neye and Tiara and that is why he brings them together at the point he does; not later, not sooner but just in time for him to fulfil his promises. In Home, you will witness how love translates to trust and vice versa. In Home, you will witness the transcending work of intercessory prayers. In Home, you will travel between the worlds of men and angels. In Home, you will witness the strength in the cord that tethers families and friends. Dami Adetu’s message in this novel is clear: home is a resting place.

Home is easy to get into, straightforward, and devoid of arcane language. Early on in the novel, each character is given a need that has to be met. They are all looking for something and it is in the process of finding out what it is that this novel unravels itself both to the readers and the characters themselves. It is this process that the first chapter in the book of James declares a pivotal part of the Christian journey and should not be boycotted. To cap it all, Home is a journey to get into if you are looking to reignite your love for God or strengthen your belief in God and his restorative power.