Coconut

A Black Girl Fostered by a White Family in the 1960s and Her Search for Belonging and Identity

By: Florence Ọlájídé

Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh

Narrated by Adjoa Andoh and featured on the Graham Norton Book Club

"Why am I not White like everybody else?"

Nan came and sat on the edge of my bed. "What do you mean?" A tender finger brushed against my cheek.

"Well, everyone in this house is white. Why am I Black?"

A generation of Nigerian children were born in Britain in the '50s and '60s, privately fostered by white families, then taken to Nigeria by their parents.

Coconut is the story of one of those children.

1963, North London. Nan fosters one-year-old Florence Olajide and calls her "Ann". Florence adores her foster mother more than anything but Nan, and the children around her, all have white skin, and she can’t help but feel different. Then, four years later, after a weekend visit to her birth parents, Florence never returns to Nan. Two months after, sandwiched between her mother and father plus her three siblings, six-year-old Florence steps off a ship in Lagos to the fierce heat of the African sun.

Swapping the lovely, comfortable bed in her room at Nan’s for a mat on the floor of the living room in her new home, Florence finds herself struggling to adjust. She wants to embrace her cultural heritage but doesn’t speak Yoruba and knows nothing of the customs. Clashes with her grandmother, Mama, the matriarch of the family, result in frequent beatings. Torn between her early childhood experiences and the expectations of her African culture, she begins to question who she is. Nigerian, British, both?

Florence’s story is a tale of loss and loneliness, surviving poverty, maltreatment, and fighting to get an education. Most of all, it’s a moving, uplifting, and inspiring account of one woman’s self-determination to discover who she is and find her way to a place she can call home. Perfect for fans of Lemn Sissay’s My Name Is Why and Tara Westover’s Educated.

©2021 Florence Ọlájídé (P)2021 Thread, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd.

Critic reviews

"Extraordinarily moving...a stunning read, beautifully written with searing honesty and humor about the complexities of race and identity, about culture and belonging, about the discernible quest for self-discovery. This is a testimony of faith, resilience, and determination, a wonderful achievement." (Abi Daré, international best-selling author of The Girl with the Louding Voice)

"A piece of poetic resilience, Coconut is an integral intervention in our understanding of race, identity and belonging. (David Lammy, politician)

"I found myself completely immersed from the start! Florence writes with honesty, beauty and courage…delving deeply into some of the most important issues of our times." (Christy Lefteri, international best-selling author of The Beekeeper of Aleppo)

More personal memoir, thin as a social document

I bought this book expecting it to be an inspiration story of a woman grappling with identity, torn between two cultures and finding a way to rise above the fray. I'm sure the author would claim that is the case, however I found it to be lacking. I really wanted to like it, but as time went on, with little more than stories of childhood in Britain and Nigeria, it became clear that any conflict and resolution would be very slight indeed.

To its credit, the book did give a detailed account of growing up in Nigeria, more specifically in Yoruba culture. That was new to me, and I found it to be enlightening. To the extent that it demonstrated the issues involved for a Black child growing up in Nigeria with an early British upbringing, it was also educational, if not entirely comprehensive.

Where the book falls down is the author's lack of self-awareness as she's touting (rather immodestly, it has to be said) her search for self-awareness. I would never minimize or in any way deny accounts of racism, but for 90% of the book the examples are speculative (by her own admission) or anecdotal. The issues with British bureaucracy and passport control are certainly true and a stain on the nation, but only marginally mentioned. While the author is struggling with her own identity, nationally and culturally, she manages to broadly paint innocent questions and comments (perhaps uncomfortable and showing poor form, and mostly from children) as micro-aggressions about her heritage. Yet she rarely recognizes the fact that this curiosity is coming from sources massively less informed about her unique upbringing, that even she doesn't fully understand. It'd almost be enough to make your feel for her, but as time went on, I felt less and less sympathetic. To be fair, in the last 45 minutes to an hour the book starts to hit its stride, but by that time I'd started clock watching. Too little, too late. Too self-aggrandizing to be likable, yet not strident enough to garner respect. Overall, just a disappointment. Tempted to give 2s, but the core theme is important, and the performance of voices was excellent.

Highly recommended-Must read

Not only a wonderful well written story but also a must read for anyone interested in or in need of some understanding when it comes to cross cultural relations. Well done. Comment by Eileen Fashoro

Entertaining and compelling autobiography

Poignant and well written autobiography. Wonderful comparison between British and Nigerian cultures.
I listen to a lot of Audiobooks, and this is one of the best readers I have heard.
She really brought the characters to life and did a great job doing both Nigerian and British accents! One of the best books I have read, and I read a lot of books!