AUTHOR | Eriye Onagoruwa |
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Dear Alaere
₦3,500.00
Alaere Benson is your typical modern, professional woman in search of that elusive work-life balance and societal acceptance in Lagos. When she gets a job at Criole, she is excited to be working for a multinational company, but it does not take long for her to see that Criole is dysfunctional and bears an eerie similarity to Nigeria.
As she struggles to find her footing in her new role, she witnesses a never-ending theatre of murder, sexual harassment and mysticism. At home, she is happily married to ‘Laja, but they begin to have problems when they experience difficulties having children and their situation is compounded by extended family interference.
With things spiralling out of control, she is forced to reassess how she feels about the chaos around her and takes charge of her life with her often humorous, frank diary entries. As she confronts and grapples with her experiences, she finds peace and healing through the catharsis of writing.
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Nkonye Duru –
Awesome book. Reality of women today and a great break through illustration showing were inner peace can resolve all. Super proud of the author
Uche Obi –
I think Dear Alaere is such a good book, especially for anyone who needs a fresh view of matters concerning women at home and work. Also, I got a new reading today Lagos! It’s w worthy read.
Nifemi Oyebo –
Eriye’s storytelling packs a punch. She’s the reader’s delight. Fluid, funny and realistic, she tells the tale of our lives as women, professional, Lagosians, married people, in-laws, Nigerians, humans – which we often share away from.
Kene Tinuade (verified owner) –
I thought the book will be another “Dear diary” but it turned out to be anything but that! It was a fusion of humor, satire, ambition, commitment, perseverance & so much more. Eriye used her characters to create relatable themes that spanned deeply troubling issues like the internal & external conflict suffered by “childless” couples, sexual harassment/dearth of corporate standards in the work place, defilement of young persons by relatives, religious excesses/hypocrisy, the ignorance attached to the birth of the girl (which often has dire consequences) to lighthearted humorous issues that surround every day life in Lagos and the seemingly fatal romanticism of an incurable Romeo. Through Alaere’s diary entries, her flashbacks & the narratives by the different characters using a cocktail of languages including Yoruba, English, pidgin and even french, the scenes came alive so that I felt more like I was watching a movie than reading a book. It’s been several days since I finished & I know I will read it again, this time probably more slowly than I did the first time. Until then, I hope that everyone finds the book as impactful as I did.
Ugo Udemba –
Reading Dear Alaere reminds me of my mother’s meal of fufu and afang soup when we were kids. We never wanted it to end too soon. So, we always ate slowly so that it could last for a lifetime, and the second it finished, we had already started dreaming of the next meal of fufu and afang. Dear Alaere is written in a way that makes you feel the author is seated right there with you, narrating her experiences in life as the both of you ride home after a difficult day – real and surreal simultaneously. Kudos to Eriye. Can’t wait for the second one.
Alero –
I do not regret buying this book.It was a very good read. I like that it broached the subject of sexual harassment in the work place, office politics and other topics peculiar to our society and professional women in general. It mirrors back to us what our society is, and what it could be, if we pause and take action. I look forward to the next.
Ifeoluwa Prem –
Thank you for making me read “Dear Alaere”
This is the first Nigerian authored book I’ll read and love.
I was glued to the pages🥺 Didn’t drop it till I finished reading it.
I loved how the author portrayed the Nigerian working environment, her colleague who was always casting out Demons but was caught sending nudes😂😂
Her Driver who kept on pushing his wife to have Male kids till he drove her to death 😢.
I wished the Mother in law didn’t die too🥺 But she literally drove herself into sickness.
The story line is amazing and I really can’t wait to read more books from the author
Ifeoluwa Prem.
Gbenga Oki –
Some literary works of transverse societal issues and challenges. “Dear Alaere” successfully achieves this with pinpoint accuracy through the contemporary character “Alaere”, a smart and professional executive who juggles office politics, obnoxious family issues and urban societal pressures.
The author’s witty and humorous style almost belies the gravity of the matters addressed and this keeps the reader gripped throughout, wondering_what on earth_the next development will be.