Face Me I Face You

‘Face Me I Face You’ is the ingenious equivalent of affordable social housing in Nigeria, where rental properties require tenants to share essential facilities and, inadvertently, their most intimate spaces. Oyindamola cleverly exploits this reality in short but punchy laugh-out-loud poems that use wit and humor to tell profound stories about her vibrant and memorable characters.
Dami Ajayi
Author of A Woman’s Body is Country and Affection & Other Accidents

Sharp, Short, and Sweet! Oyindamola’s ‘Face Me I Face You’ invites the reader into a vivid and sensory narrative poetry experience. With a range of exciting characters, Oyin has created a nostalgic page-turner and an ode to the city of Ibadan.
Tomi Adesina
Writer, The Wait

A wonderfully eclectic addition to Shoola’s ever-expanding oeuvre, ‘Face Me I Face You’ is equal parts humor, heart, and homage. Rooted in a rich cultural parlance and a tapestry of familiar characters, Shoola makes magic of the mundane, presenting a witty, compelling portrait of modern Nigerian urbanity. There is nothing out there quite like it.
Kanyinsola Olorunnisola
Founder, Sprinng

Poetry can sometimes be too challenging to comprehend or too profound to enjoy, but definitely not in Oyindamola Shoola’s ‘Face Me I Face You.’ This witty and beautifully illustrated collection of poems offers a fresh perspective on a family living in a shared housing setup, where neighbors’ lives intertwine in unexpected and often humorous ways. The book explores themes of family, tradition, and everyday dramas that most of us will easily recognize. From the bustling streets to intimate domestic moments, this collection celebrates resilience, community, and the indomitable spirit of its characters in a way that will leave most readers smiling.
S. Su’eddie Vershima Agema
Multiple Award-winning Author of Memory and the Call of Waters (Winner, Association of Nigerian Authors Poetry Prize 2022 and Finalist, Nigeria Prize for Literature 2022)

‘Face Me I Face You’ is a brilliant and outstanding collection that comments on social issues through its unique storytelling, characterization, delicate blend of language, refreshing humor, and satire. Drawing from life and culture, Oyindamola takes readers on an immersive experience that leaves them entertained and desiring more.
Ebukun Gbemisola Ogunyemi
York University